Reflection

I've been home just over a month now and things are pretty much back to normal.  I am back to working two days a week doing massage, have two community pilates classes starting at the beginning of October and am doing a some administration work for my friend as and when she needs a hand.  One thing I did promise myself was not to over-stretch myself and end up working too much and over too many days like I used to before I left for Riyadh.  I believe this is one of the reasons why I felt the need for a change and ended up in Saudi.  Sometimes we try and fit too many things into such a short space of time and actually forget how to enjoy things.  So for me, getting the work - life balance right was definitely one of the things I needed to address and up to yet it seems to working quite well.  I know I won't earn as much money but sometimes you just have to re-evaluate and ask yourself what your priorities are and what is important to make you happy.  The second thing I needed to address was my relationship with Steven and what we needed to do in order to make it more harmonious.....relationships are hard as we all know and unless we are prepared to work at them and give and take, they will end up failing.  So we have been trying hard to be mindful of each others needs and address things that are not working and "touch wood".....we seem to be doing pretty well.
In the first few weeks back I did have a few times where I felt quite flat and wondered if I had made the right decision in not returning in September but to be honest we all have days where we feel flat.  I know I have made the right decision, even though I miss the girls out there and I also miss that I had very little to worry about, only eating, sleeping and working but life would be pretty boring if that was all we did day in and day out.
I am really enjoying having the freedom of being able to go where I want and do what I want when it suits me.  The Muslim way of life in Riyadh is very restrictive, being a woman, prayer times, the heat but I am also very fortunate that I had a chance to experience something different and would encourage anyone if you have a dream or a desire then go and chase it and try to make it happen.
I have not written off working in another country again.  My short time in Riyadh gave me the confidence to give something a go if it was what my heart desired and life is too short to sit at home saying" I wish I had tried this or done that" even if you do it and it isn't what you expect at least you can say you have tried it and draw a line under it.
I have been doing a lot of cycling since I got back and am loving being outside, even though the weather is starting to turn and it takes a bit more effort to get out of the door, unlike when the sun is shining......the reason why I am telling you this is that I am off to the Pyrenees soon tackle a few famous cycling climbs and thought it may be an opportunity to write another blog......
So for now, life feels good, I feel like I am in the right place and being in Riyadh gave me the kick up the backside I needed to get things back on track at home.  Like they say "A change is as good as a rest"