Kenny’s Blog - 8
The world seems a little brighter today.
After going for coffee with Callum, I decided that maybe what I needed to do was to find some space and pull myself together. I called my family and set up a trip back home for a couple of weeks. It had been way too long since I last saw my family, it wasn't as if we had a difficult relationship, far from it. I believe it was just more to do with the fact that I kept myself busy with work and projects in order to keep my mind in check and be constantly striving towards that economic prosperity that all the older people are constantly talking about. The last thing I have ever wanted to be was entitled. The shortfall of that is when you spend all your time working, you simply lose sight of the important things like family and little by little, time streams its way through and before you know it, you have gone several months with no contact.
I genuinely thought I was going to get a sordid condemnation from my Mum when I told her I had been fired, but I received nothing of the sort. She just kept asking me how I felt and that the best thing I could do was come home.
In the vein of every economically tight Brit, I packed a bag and jumped on the next available megabus to take me back to my hometown. I was heading home.
Tall city buildings rolled away into beautiful countryside populated with ancient trees and winding streams with a myriad of mallards quacking at passing traffic.
I exited the bus and was left with a 40 minute walk to reach my family home, the weather was pristine blue skies as far as the eye could see. I made my way down the path and found myself beginning to whistle a optimistic little tune. I had spent so long completely wrapped up in my own thoughts that taking this humble little walk felt like a mental detox. No bustle, no pressure, nobody's expectations to meet. It was absolutely wonderful. It was at this point where I began to question the current location of my phone, as I had not had any notifications since I left the bus. I rummaged around in my pocket but there was no phone to be found. The wave of panic began to set in as the thought sunk in that I suddenly had no contact; nobody could reach me! I probably left it on the bus which would be miles down the road by then so the only thing I could do was get home and then make contact with the bus company. Hopefully someone picked it up and handed it in. As my feet crunched over the fallen leaves on the path I steadily felt my panic leave me, it was just a phone after all, it’s not the end of the world. In fact, in a strange way I felt quite relieved. No notifications or messages to answer back, just me, the ducks and the trees.
Technology makes our lives easier in many, many ways. But it also pulls us out of the moment. Reflecting on the conversation I had with Steph, it dawned on me that maybe it was time for me to start listening to my own advice and just stop giving a damn. I dipped my hand in the river and watched as the surface of the water rippled out from my touch. I sat for a while, enjoying the ambience of my surroundings until the sun began to set.
By the time I finally made it back home, Mum was outside watering flowers with a jug of icy lemonade sitting on the window sill. She welcomed me with a big embrace and told me she was so happy to see me. I grabbed the watering can and helped her finish watering the flowers, then I felt a vibration in my backpack. Of course.
I felt my eyes roll into the back of my head for being such a dum-dum. Always check the backpack!
I took out the phone and saw that there was one unread text from Nathan.
“Kenny! We need your help with something important, can you ring me ASAP?!?!”