LIFE IN A NUTSHELL
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Life is amazing, and I am grateful for my opportunities, accomplishments and the energy I keep around me from family and friends.
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Growing up as a boy between London and Hampshire, I frequently travelled at an early age, and my years leading up to adulthood were by far average and where I found my adventurer nomad soul.
I was an overly active child, and my parents, not being the active type and finding me too hard to handle, made me attend boarding school in Hampshire.
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I have mixed feelings about my time spent there, but the opportunities and knowledge I attained across many fields gave me confidence and helped create the individual I am today.
Like most teenagers from London in the early '90s, I idolised underground dance music, pirate radio and the rave scene, with hardcore/jungle/drum and bass setting the tone. I will never forget raving or spinning records with friends, creating ways to release my artistic side. Living in South East London in this era created so many memories I still hold dear, but there was always something in my soul that felt missing.
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My time spent in Hampshire with trips to Devon and Dorset over the years introduced me to nature and the great outdoors, and moving back to London from the countryside had affected me more than I ever admitted, which I tried hard to ignore. It is hard to explain completely, but I understood I wanted away from the city. To compensate for my thirst for adventure, I would spend a lot of lost energy partying with friends and felt alone with my experiences.
Life dramatically changed in 2008 when I found out my mother had cancer. My mother was the soul of family life, always cooking and keeping the house in check. She was the one I confided in and talked to when I needed support, and she was my closest and dearest. Like all mothers, she yearned for the best for me, and our last conversation before she went into a coma was about the future.
After six months spent watching her die; I lost all faith in God, which put me in such a dark place, which made me ill-prepared for the battles ahead. My mother was the first time I lost a loved one, and the feeling was heartbreaking. I knew everything would change and would never be the same, and the thought of never talking with her again left me feeling empty and powerless.
CHANGE IS GOOD
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Fast forward five years after multiple trips abroad, finding myself living and working in Siem Reap, Cambodia. I love Asia, and managing a nightclub was a dream come true. I felt intoxicated by culture, food, Buddhism, amazing friends and a community of like-minded people.
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Discovering this amazing land granted me freedoms I didn't get living in London, and I used this time expressing my creative side, DJing and not taking life too seriously. Thank you, my good friend Carlo, for the best job of managing X bar with amazing opportunities and great people. We had some epic times, and the tales are vast and legendary.Â
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In Cambodia, I also got my first taste of owning a restaurant when I bought a cafe and named it Tims Greasy Spoon, a 1-year experience I will leave for another day.Â
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I had many adventures in the years I spent dotting around Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, and I miss travelling with all my heart.
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To sum up, my entire experience was hard, but I am pretty sure it's the people I met along the way. The friendships and bonds I made and the glorious feeling of knowing you are not alone. Travelling and living day to day with fresh adventures is something I would recommend to everyone.
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If I could go back to a place in time from travelling, it would be to JJs in Sihanoukville as a bartender with Jesse, Laura and Kristin. We had some crazy nights working for Jason and Jonny, and I loved every second with this crazy bunch of beautiful people.
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In 2018, I left Asia and returned to live with my father in London.
My now ex-girlfriend had moved to China to continue as an English teacher, and we would spend the next few years planning a future and seeing each other when we could with me working in construction to save money for future travelling.
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It was a very hard time for me, and with my grandmother getting sick, the certainty of me and my ex breaking up became a reality. With a load of other nightmares from my past returning, this had a massive impact on me and left me feeling hurt.
My darkest hour came from these events and losing my grandmother as I returned from a holiday in Asia at the start of a pandemic hurt me and created a new perspective.
WHAT CHANGED ME, MOTIVATION AND GOALS
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I think we all have life-changing moments relating to the pandemic, some good and some bad. Mine was necessary to my mental health and the life choices I had in front of me. I realised I wasn't going back to Asia soon, and having the UK as my home is the biggest blessing in life.
Photography is perfect for me being outside and discovering unknown places, and videography is a way to share my adventures as they happen. I have such a passion for photography and the feeling I get from what it offers me.
Swapping the paintbrush for a camera saved my mental health and showed me an alternative path in my ever-changing world.
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From many years of travel, I have learned the inspiration we get from sharing and enjoying the moments that make us happy and sad are priceless. My photography feels a blessing and something I would recommend to anyone regarding mental health and the pressures of life. It played a massive part in my healing process and has given me a freedom I only knew as a boy.
I will continue down this path sharing my life, dreams and adventures, hopefully inspiring others to follow theirs.
