2022 got off to a challenging start for me personally, ignoring for a moment the chaos currently besetting various locations globally.

They say bad things happen in threes, and between January and February, I got hit by a triple whammy.

  • My relationship of 2.5 years came to a heartbreaking end. Sometimes, things don’t work out, and that’s part of life, but it’s brutal when you’ve been building a life together.
  • An old friend of mine from university passed away in horrific circumstances. I was profoundly shocked and viscerally confronted with my inner landscape and mortality.
  • I decided to terminate my previous working arrangement due to some challenging interpersonal dynamics, which had unfortunately deteriorated over the course of 2021.

I’m grateful that March and April were much better, albeit frenetic.

  • I attended two weddings, one old friend and one new. Both were incredible, and I had fantastic discussions with people I met at both weddings, which filled me with tremendous enthusiasm.
  • I made giant leaps on the Logseq course thanks to early feedback and endless revisiting of the content, and the sales have been able to (just) cover my expenses for March and April (which was my goal)
  • I’ve written more than ever before, and the writing bug has bitten me hard. I’m looking forward to continuing to exercise this muscle and hopefully improving my writing.

One thing I haven’t done enough of is rest and play.

  • I haven’t been able to stay away from my computer for longer than a day, even over weekends, even though I’ve been reflecting in my journal and meditating almost daily.
  • I declined invites to go surfing or play soccer on the beach because I was anxious to make progress on the course. I worked almost every weekend that I wasn’t at a wedding, and many late nights.
  • I have once again seen unhealthy patterns of “food is fuel” emerge in my life. Instead of enjoying the food preparation process, it becomes a functional activity and meal breaks get compressed into 15-minute windows.

There’s a lot that I could unpack here, but the time has come for a little break.

Luckily, a friend and I planned to go to AfrikaBurn this year, and that starts tomorrow. I think it will be a great reset. No phone, no computer, no external engagement with anyone outside of a 2km radius in the middle of the Tankwa Karoo National Park. Starry nights, more great discussions, and a little bit of “letting go” of the real world, just for a week.

I’m looking forward to writing more when I get back. My scratchpad is full of ideas, and I want to make time to polish them a little bit more.

I hope you’re able to rest and play as much as you need 🙏🏽

See you soon,
Dario