A Form of Escape

Hello! My name is Tilly.

So... This is a bit awkward. I'm not really sure how to start a blog. I'll just jump right in... I can be a bit cavalier with the proper usage of punctuation, so I apologise in advance.

My aim is to is blog about my life outside of work, so that I can share with the world the different skills that I am learning and the experiences that I am having.

I have a budding interest in the following:

- gardening (specifically growing flowers)

- photography (since this Friday just gone!)

- reading (I'm trying to read a lot more)

- painting (I'm a bit crap, but I want to get better)

I guess the theme of this blog is self-development, above all. I was a bit unhappy towards the end of last year and the start of this year, so I decided to reflect on my life. I started to reflect on what I could change easily and concluded that the way I was spending a lot of my free time was leading me to feel quite miserable. I was spending huge amounts of time online window shopping, aimlessly scrolling through Pinterest and Instagram and mindlessly playing video games. Having said that, I think gaming is the least damaging part, as long as it is in moderation.

I'm over the hump of my mid-twenties and I'm turning 27 soon. It's not like I think I'm particularly ancient, but this has given me a bit of a kick up the backside with regard to time wasting. I just don't want to turn 37 and to look back and think that I have frittered away the last decade of my life. Don't get me wrong, I've accomplished a decent amount in the last decade of my life, but I'm starting to question all kinds of things. Am I in the position that I am in (in my work and personal life) due to choice, or because I either don't know what else is available, or I'm too scared to venture out in order to find out?

I want to do a bit of soul-searching. I want to be able to open a lot of new doors for myself and challenge who I think I am. I want to develop new skills and use my free time as purposefully as possible. I want to be more creative and to experience nature on a deeper level (bit cringe-y to say, but I mean it). I've always had this deep feeling of peace and inner comfort when I do that. So, to sum up, it's all about exploration and challenging the status quo, for me.

I've bought a camera recently and so I'll show you some of my photographs. I bought a Nikon D3500 and I've taken it out of automatic mode only a couple of times. I'm hoping to learn a lot more about photography in the coming months.

You may spot a subject theme: my cat, flowers and the occasional sunset. They should diversify a little bit after lockdown eases.