Expat Life: Missing my writing
Writing used to be a full time job for me until I moved to Holland. Without sufficient knowledge of the local language, it is very hard for a lifestyle writer like myself to make a living through the pen. It is ironic that while I have fulfilled my dream of traveling and living in Europe part of that dream which is telling the story is somehow left behind in order to achieve a more important goal of settling in and building a life.Now I resort to blogging as a way to sustain that flickering desire to write. Much as I would like to spend a week writing beside the heater while watching the autumn leaves fall, I have to earn the cost of the insulation and other immediate needs. To make matters worse, due to my Dutch lessons which scrambled the order of words into something that cannot be translated in English, my spoken English has been severely affected while my writing skill is slowly being gnawed away by the complexities of the Dutch language.
It is one in the morning, one of the rare times that I can write without disturbances. Had my eyes not bothered for two days, so much that I have to make an appointment with the doctor tomorrow, I would not have one hour more to stay in bed tomorrow morning. Still, I am not staying up late to write. I’m actually doing a television report, one of the things I do on the side to at least feel that I can write and tell stories.
I actually have a thousand stories to tell, the puppets of Prague, the thermal baths in Budapest and Slovakia, the beautiful Black Forest and their quirky hats, the alcohol of every country I visited, the difficulty of an expat life and learning a new language, the lack of restaurants open for lunch in the Netherlands, the heartbreaks of failing the theory exam and the challenges of controlling a car, the realizations of being a Filipino in another country and appreciating my values more and others stories that can only sit in my mind at this time.
I miss writing. If only it is that easy.
I sometimes wish I had more time for writing as well. I can't wait until my current project at work slows down.
I really can relate! Lately time hasn't allowed me to do much writing, and I can relate very much with what you shared here:
"To make matters worse, due to my Dutch lessons which scrambled the order of words into something that cannot be translated in English, my spoken English has been severely affected while my writing skill is slowly being gnawed away by the complexities of the Dutch language."
I am not even sure sometimes, until maybe someone points it out, how I have perhaps mixed up a sentence in English. As a matter of fact, something along those same lines, just yesterday I was on the phone speaking English with someone who knows not one word of Dutch, and when I meant to say 'but,' I said 'maar.' Didn't even realize it until they said something! I wonder, really, how often am I doing that…
Wooh, for me, it has been exactly the opposite. Expat life has helped me fulfill my writing dreams and has propelled me on to the writing path.
But like you, I feel there are so many tales to share about expat experiences, travels and language learning mishaps – I am trying my best to do all this and more on my blog Orangesplaash.
@ Invader_Stu as I understand, you are in game development? You can have some down time. I work in shipping and logistics. The schedule is crazy, I even work during the night whenever a ship only have 6 hours in the harbor.
@ Isabella I know. And it gets worse by the day. I can't wait for the day that my English will go back to being decent. They say that when you have mastered a second language, then your old languages will go back to normal.
@ Arwa, I am used to writing 1000-word per story and really sit down and devote time for my article. But I have a full time job, a side job as a journalist and Dutch lessons and driving lessons. Plus I am also a housewife (thank God no children!) So I am juggling so many roles at the same time. It can get really heavy. So far, blogging hasn't given me the same feelings as seeing my byline in a magazine or newspaper. Sad.
Seeing your byline in a print publication is a thrill, but the beauty of blogging is that by its very nature, your words start a conversation with your readers that unfolds in real time. It's likely that InvaderStu, Isabella, Arwa and I would never have contacted you if we'd read your work in a magazine, yet here we are, all chatting about how we find the time to write.
I think you should keep on blogging — it gives you the creative outlet you need, and it sometimes leads to other things. (I was contacted two weeks ago by a magazine editor — on another continent — who had read my blog, I Was An Expat Wife, and liked what she saw enough to offer me work.) Blogging is something you can fit in around your other commitments, and it gives you the freedom to write what YOU want to write. Don't give up!
@ Pinay in Dutchland: Yes, that is true. I myself am juggling a lot of responsibilities – home, work, blog, travels – I also write for a number of online publications and finding some free time becomes all the more difficult. But I love what I am doing, though I would not mind some more hours in the day 🙂
Ohh i can so so relate here…While i reading this post of yours, i could see how much heart you have put in here while writing this.
Sometimes i feel that i am losing my command over English. I write and when i read it i see it full of mistakes. I hate it, but just holding on the thought that this will also pass on !
I won’t analyse. I’ll just agree with the last line. Exactly how I felt when I moved to the UK in 2006. The urge to write was like a phantom limb. It was there; I strongly felt it, but couldn’t physically and mentally practice it, all because of the unfamiliarity of my new surroundings. It took years and the breakdown of my relationship to try again. I’d say it’s one of the best decisions I’ever made 🙂 x