April assortment

So it's the 1st of May (or at least it was, about an hour ago). This means that I'm a good 11 months into my excursion to this side of the world.

I just felt like typing smth before I go to sleep. The past 5 months have flown by, and it feels like not long ago when I was lamenting the fact that I'd still had 7-8 months left before I could go home. Then again, like J said, even though time does fly, there's no doubt upon looking back that we've been away for a very long time. But that's a (long) story for another day.

April deserves a bit of a mention for being the latest month to zip past, but with the distinction of being one of the most enjoyable and meaningful. [It's like Feb but without the angst] Bouldering in Fontainebleau. Sun and gelato in Italy. 2 carefree days in Derbyshire. 2Gs in the air.

It was mildly amusing how each travel period would be separated by increasingly panicky bouts of reality. Thanks exams. But at least I got to fully enjoy those times away. Not to mention the sentimentalism associated with visiting the place where it all began, and the people who have been in that place for ages and ages. And some of whom now see us as friends. I hope it won't be 10 years before we get to see them again.

15 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Happier
I found myself resonating most with the "Embrace Adversity" part and I don't find it the least bit strange. According to the infographic, from adversity, we gain distance and perspective. I believe it's like seeing things from different and wider angles, some of which are a happier view than others, and that having been through adversity gives us the ability to calm down and choose from a range of angles that never seemed to be there before. There is almost always a better picture I guess, just whether or not we choose to see it.

[In cases where there is no better picture, bitching is catharsis.]

The friends, fun, fatigue, and everything. I'm grateful for all that I've got to experience this year, that's all.

Special mention to the rapeseed fields. When the countryside is coloured in the brightest yellow you can find in a Faber Castell set, you know that spring is really here. And whatever may be on mind (usually revision) I can't help but marvel.

On a path between the villages of Breedon on the Hill and Melbourne.

In the skies above Cranfield, probably in the midst of a dutch roll.