Change on the horizon

If you're reading this, then chances are, you're intrigued to know what our big news is... Well before you think I'm pregnant, (which is funny, because I still struggle to keep a house plant alive!), I'll get it out that we are lifting and shifting our lives to the sunny north of Italy! Now if this brings up many curious questions in you, I bet you can only imagine the journey that the last few months have been... I'll start from the beginning.

Once upon a time, long before we met, there was a little mini TPS, who applied and applied for work experience with every F1 team under the sun. To no avail. Rejection after rejection came back in return. It would have been very easy for that little mini TPS to take it as a sign, and move on to something more steady, to temper that dream. But did he do any such thing? No, of course he didn't. Instead, he bode his time, and quietly grafted. He grafted his way through an engineering masters, he grafted his way through summer placements and years in industry, and he grafted is way through project managing a student racing team.

And then one day, every ounce of hard work paid off. A certain racing team, famous for its red cars got in touch, and offered that little mini TPS's dream in full. The job. The dream job.

The only problem was, there was a stubbornly independent wife of one year in the picture now. What to do!? The subject was broached, tentatively. (Now is probably a good time to clarify: neither of us speak a word of Italian...) At first it was a sad no. How could I give up my life that I am so perfectly comfortable in? We had even been looking around houses, okay okay, flats (you try getting your first place in Henley with no huge inheritance and you'll see what I mean!), for goodness sake. Why would we give that all up to move to a foreign country, with only one of us in work?

But then the cogs in my brain began to whir. Tom's dream. But also, the mini MLK who always said that she would try to live this mad world to the fullest, to never let fear or anxiety stop me from chasing my comfort zone ever outwards. And slowly, slowly. I realised that there was no way I could let my fear of uncertainty stand in the way of both his dream and a whole wealth of opportunities. And finally, I realised it could be OUR dream, as well. So, unbelievably, and to the shock of myself, Tom, and likely almost everyone that knows me, I said yes.

And that, simply put, is the story of how it came to be, that at the end of November (ish, because no, the timelines aren't set in stone - eeek.), we will be moving out of Henley-on-Thames in leafy Oxfordshire, and moving to Modena, Italy. My employer has been fantastically understanding, and despite me only starting there this year, will be allowing me to operate remotely with a little bit of part time work. Aside from that, I plan to foray into the world of freelance. I am passionate about words, and have never explored this. I also speak multiple languages. So I hope that these are skills I will be able to develop into something I can provide services to the world with, from our little apartment in Italy. Let's see.

In a nutshell - that's the story! If anyone has experienced a move like this, I would be eternally grateful if you were to get in touch. Equally, if anyone has any guidance on starting out in the world of freelance, copywriting, or translation - the same applies. Those who I have already spoken to have been wonderfully supportive, and for that I am so thankful.

I'm sure this blog will see updates of a more eclectic nature in the coming months, so if you're curious and want to find out how this all pans out - watch this space! :)

All my love,

ML x