count your blessings – Of Snailmail, Books & Vanities

Previously I used to do reviews at the end of each month. This one’s a bit late but it comes with a twist – I’m going to share with you the things I have come to see as blessings in my new environment instead.

Here they are ~

1. Silence. I’ve always been one to appreciate friendly neighbors and the buzz of metropolitan life, so to be placed in my current environment has been nothing short of a shock: a huge subdivision of large houses, a lot of them empty and decrepit. The ones that seem to be lived-in are generally devoid of any sign of life: no children playing, no dogs running about, no music or the sound of TV. Only a few people traverse the streets at any given time that I am sometimes surprised to hear laughter or the sound of conversation.

An absolute test of my sanity. And yet I’ve come to see it as an invitation to just be still and make space for what’s to come.

2. Nature sounds. In this blanket of silence I learned to hear a concert of bird sounds, some so mechanical that I initially mistook it for motorized equipment. And of course, the crickets and bullfrogs in the evenings 🙂

3. So much green + fresh air. Behind our house runs an expansive golf course and beyond that, beautiful hills. The subdivision roads are wide and tree-lined with minimal vehicles passing by.

4. The weather. I love the sudden, strong bouts of rain. The immediate clear, blue skies that follow afterwards. And the sporadic gusts of wind that rustle the leaves.

5. This ghost-town subdivision. Somewhat of a double-edged sword, I choose to look at it as some kind of feast for the eyes instead. Except for the empty and neglected ones, there are some really amazing, beautiful, huge houses here. It’s enough of a treat to drive around and gaze at them.

6. The oval. ‘Nuff said 🙂

7. Our house. It’s big and spacious but not hilariously so (thank God!). With balconies that look out into the golf course and out onto the main street.

8. Vegetables that wilt within the day. Bane at first, but now I see them as perhaps having much less exposure to chemicals. Most of them look normal with the occasional spots and bruises, not the flawless, up-sized versions of the ones I was used to. Less chemicals, better for our health.

9. Proximity to Singapore. We are just an hour away from Singapore. Thank goodness! 🙂 If I feel the need for a shot of metropolitan buzz, I know where to go.

10. My family is together. After a couple of years being in a long distance relationship there’s some awkwardness and novelty at the moment, but we are whole and this is an opportunity for us to grow together.