The Love Story Part 2 - He Is My Destiny

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He kept on in my thoughts. I wished him well on notable occasions, Christmas and New Year. He shared photos from Amsterdam and reported on his visit to the Klimt/Schiele exhibition that he saw before Christmas. I sent him the articles I'd written about my Cambodian trip. We each share about our respective visits to the theatre, and he expressed his excitement and anxiety about moving into a new apartment, his Brave New World.

Nina looking pretty ready to date to forget about Russ Hines

By February, I was still unable to get him out of my mind. I tried dating as a distraction. eHarmony, speed dating, Bumble, even Tinder! No sparks, not even a fizzle. I went out with one guy that seemed OK, but he wasn't happy when I commented how he seemed to be dating quite soon after his wife had died. It wasn't a judgement: I was interested. Needless to say, I didn't hear from him again. Self-sabotage? Maybe.

I tried to absorb myself in my work and daily life. I took up teaching the Photography Diploma at TAFE in addition to running my corporate headshot photography studio and occasionally shooting the swimming out at the Olympic Park. In addition, I volunteered for the Humor Organisation photographing The Clown Doctors in action at Westmead Children's Hospital.

If my work didn't keep me busy enough, I had four young adults living with me who required my physical and emotional attention. Whilst they did make some meals, I enjoyed cooking their main meal each day after work. Parenting alone was a huge challenge and meals felt like the one way I could still connect with them.

A martini on a table in a dimly lit bar called The Swinging Cat

Whilst the whirlwind of my daily life was going on, I was still in the midst of divorce proceedings. This took a huge emotional toll as well as a physical and financial one. So, remaining physically and socially active was extremely important to me. Staying connected with friends was a huge support, and so I kept up my walks and occasional evenings out to the theatre, ballet or drinks whenever I could.

One such evening I was sipping a martini on a plush sofa in the elegant Swinging Cat bar with a group of friends. The conversation turned to me, and my love life. I mentioned the encounter I'd had and how, as much as I had tried, I couldn't stop thinking about him. How perfectly compatible we seemed and that there was a prodding instinct that we were meant to be together but that sadly he was in London.

One lady replied "What are you waiting for? Buy a ticket to London!"

And so I did...


The story continues here...

Read from the beginning here....

 

THE AUTHOR

As it does, life took a devastating sideways turn for me. With fierce determination, I quit my teaching job, shut down my photography business, packed up my apartment, hired an agent and rented it out on Airbnb, bought a ticket to London and embarked on an adventure of discovery, both about the world and myself. I’ve learned a great deal about people, places and myself. I’m happy that you are here for the ride. Nina x

Where you can find my work...
I will be documenting my travels through photography on Facebook and Instagram. Prints will also be available on my website. If you are interested in following along, here are some of my sites.

Facebook Group - Finding Nina Adventure
Sharing daily adventures from my travels including discoveries about myself and the people around me 

Blog - My Curious Camera
An in-depth look at places I've visited with plenty of travel information from Ireland, France, UK, Iceland and who knows where next.  

Website - My Curious Camera
Where you can purchase signed, framed limited edition prints of my work.

Website - Nina Beilby Photography
My professional work as a portrait photographer

Comments

Sue said…
Can't wait for the next part nina!
28 August 2022 at 21:14
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