I think it’s safe to say that nearly all of us were affected by COVID in one way or another. We lost loved ones, made bars in our sheds, some of us finally caught up with our reading lists, and divorce lawyers became rich—richer.
As for me, my world came to a grinding halt. I was no longer singing, and my business collapsed before my very eyes. I was lost, broke, and a bit too naïve about the business world to be as inventive as I needed to be to survive lockdown.
My life just before COVID looked pretty good on the surface, but the foundations were not as sturdy as I’d first thought. The fragility of it all was staring me in the face, and I had nowhere to run.
I’d like to tell you that this was the moment I picked myself up off the floor, wiped the defeat from my eyes, and pushed through (whilst epic superhero music roared in the background). Alas, I had further to fall—we’ll talk about that another time.
I did eventually pick myself up, though, and in a moment of I’m not dead yet clarity, I decided to go and get a degree. Upon reflection, I think there may have been some holes in my plan. However, no plan is perfect, and at the time, this was as good a plan as any. Yes, I would be in considerable debt, but I would have something to show for it—and something I needed even more than that: stability, direction, and purpose.
That was four years ago, and now I’m only a few months away from graduating. University did exactly what I hoped it would do. It gave me stability, direction, and purpose. I also gained enough breathing space to heal, rebuild, and figure out who I am and what I might want to do with myself.
Four years is a long time. In all honesty, I didn’t even know if I would be able to finish the degree. I certainly wouldn’t have been able to tell you what I thought life was likely to look like towards the end of my studies. When I signed up for university all those years ago, I didn’t know what tomorrow was going to look like or if I would even make it to the end of the week. And yet, somehow, I knew I was making the right choice in that moment.
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I don’t know if you can relate, but I’ve noticed that there are moments in life where—so long as you are listening—you know with certainty that you are doing the right thing, in the right place, making the right move. Some call it God, others might call it the cosmic power of the universe whispering in your ear. I like to think of it as intuition (whatever that is). Perhaps it’s all of the above and more. What I do know is that it’s real.
I’m not even sure it’s a feeling—it’s a knowing. Like when you know the answer to a question in a pub quiz, but you have no idea how you know the answer or where you might have gleaned it from. You just know.
I remember vividly opening my email from USW and bursting into tears. I may have known I was doing the right thing, but what if it was a trick? I didn’t have very much faith in myself or my abilities at that moment in life. I phoned my mum in tears.
"I’ve done it," I cried. "I’m in."
Mum obviously had no doubt that I would be accepted—but not me. I didn’t see the articulate man that everyone else saw. I just saw an illiterate waste who couldn’t spell. Thankfully, USW saw what everyone else did.
It’s a lovely story, and I’m proud to tell it, but we still haven’t got to the point I’m trying to make. There was more to my conversation with Mum. I remember saying to her:
"You know what? I’ll be debt-free the same year I graduate (excluding student debt, obviously). And I’ll be forty that year. Holy shit—2025 is going to be huge!"
2025 is going to be huge. I really meant it when I said those words, and I feel it now as I type them. I felt it every time I said it afterward—and I said it a lot.
I’m not sure how manifesting works, but I do believe in its power. I believe in the power of the universe, and I believe in the power we hold within ourselves when we are properly aligned. I believe that the spoken word is intention and form given to the energy around us.
2025 is the year it’s all happening, and there’s lots to tell—but not today.
You know me—I like to try and shoehorn some kind of message into what I write. I guess my takeaway for this blog is this: It gets better.
I realize how contrived that may sound, but it’s true. Nothing is permanent—not even sadness and pain. If things haven’t changed for you yet, change is coming. And if you’re tired of waiting, know this:
You have the power to make change.
We all do.
Until next time…
DB