Time, Day 6

I've realized this past year that, however cliche it may sound, time is precious. My time in England flew by me so quickly that I find myself questioning whether those seven months actually happened. Time, I've realized, goes by too quickly.

I was looking at some old baby photos that were stuffed in the back of my sister's closet. It was funny to look at them in chronological order, to watch as different versions of myself appeared before my eyes:

Time goes by and these big changes happen; we grow up, we get taller, we start walking, talking, going to school, making friends, falling in love. Isn't it funny that all of these things happen in small increments, that there's no precise moment we can say we feel older than three years before. It just continues to happen, this growing up, this change. It isn't until I looked back at these photos that I realized this; that each day we grow up a little more, learn something. I think that's why growing up scares me so much. I've hit a point where childhood no longer seems never ending. It has ended and the past will only continue to travel farther and farther away from me.

I've often struggled with not embracing things in the moment. I seem to be grateful for things long after they have passed me by. My uncle Andrew once told me to start living in the moment and though I've tried, it's harder than it sounds. But while I'm working on living in the moment, I'm going to try to at least slow down and embrace each day and everything it has to offer. I'm afraid I might miss something if I don't.

Cooling Off, Day 3

Reunited with Topshop, Day 2

I think that Topshop and I were destined to be together.

Just a week after I arrived back in Canada, a Topshop was opened at the boutique Jonathan+Olivia on Queen Street. My friend Eva and I went to have a look today and even though Topshop took up less than half of J&O, I still felt at home.


We walked down Queen Street to Spadina (stopped at Starbucks once though of course)

and went into the Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art (Topshop then an art gallery? It felt like London all over again).

and finally ended up at our destination: Fresh (where we ate lots of delicious fresh and healthy food).

It was nice to go into the small boutiques we always end up passing on our way to Spadina. There are some really trendy, fashionable stores that I think are somewhat forgotten about.

Hellos, Day 1

Coming back home was kind of strange. Everything was exactly how I left it as if the seven months had never happened, and yet at the same time everything felt completely different.

Hellos are probably my favourite thing. I love the rush before seeing someone you haven't seen in months (and the hugs that accompany those kinds of hellos are always the best kind).

I miss blogging. This blog has enabled me to preserve moments I may have otherwise forgotten and I'd like to continue documenting for as long as possible. There's something comforting in documenting your life, the small things that make you pause for a moment to smile or think. For me it's those small moments that define me in some way, those thoughts that I'd like to remember dwelling on, those photos of long sticky summertime days that I'd never like to lose.

Toronto in the summertime is magical to say the least. The past month I feel as though all I have done is walked (to the neighbourhood Starbucks). I forgot how amazing it is to leave my house at eleven at night and go for a midnight stroll. You can hear people chatting on their porches surrounded by candles, sprinklers whirring and the sound of cicadas on really humid nights. I have taken up running (please read: I have attempted to take up running) and am quite enjoying it (please read: am quite enjoying the thought of becoming a pro runner).

In just a few weeks my family and I are going to one of my favourite places in the world, a cottage on Thunder Beach. I can't wait. Then it will be AUGUST. The summer is going by way to fast. Soon I will be moving into University. I am so nervous but so, so excited at the same time.

Now for a list: The things I miss about England.

This child:

and this one:

Jetting off to beautiful places

Beautiful countryside

The soft light that made every photo look stunning

the train stations

and going to the coffee shop every morning & being greeted by all the Coffee Shop Boys.

After a month of stepping away from this blog, I am ready to continue to update it regularly to capture those seemingly insignificant moments that so often pass me by without being recorded.