Sunshine

Something amazing happened the other day; I found my sunshine. I don't know where it had been hiding but I am so grateful that is has returned. I do feel a lot like I have a backlog of happiness pushing its way into my life however, and it feels great!


I have decided a few things over the past week. Anyone who knows me well knows that I am completely indecisive and will jump from choice to choice very quickly, however these choices are good and solid and will bring joy to myself and others. 


I am three years into a half-baked Arts degree majoring in Media and Writing. I hate it. I love the writing, well writing in general I guess, but the reason for the degree in the first place, other than to keep my Dad happy, was for the Media. You see, I was hell-bent on being a journalist; that was until I realised that journalism isn't about spreading joy and happiness, it is about the facts. I simply can't bring myself to invest so heavily in a career which isn't going to bring joy to others, alas goodbye journalism. 


But I needed those journo units to make up enough units to graduate, so have had a bit of a heart to heart with myself and have decided to change to a psychology major. I have always been insanely interested in cognitive behaviour. It is insane how much of who we are is to do with circumstances and mindsets we find ourselves in. So I think this will be a really good decision; to study psychology. It would give me an insight into the inner workings of our mind and through that I will be able to help people. Not as a psychologist but through writing from a psychological insight. It sounds boring but wow am I excited!


Have you made any huge decisions lately? I would love to know :) x Melissa

{Image by the Notebook Doodles}

I am back

I have been contemplating how to word this, but here goes I guess. I just wanted to say that I am back. In a way I feel really guilty for not writing these past few weeks. And by not writing, I mean at all. I stopped penning little stories and I didn't manage to help my friends Mandy and Dave out with their website and I didn't even get any uni work done. 


My reasoning behind this absurdity is that I made the conscious decision not to write during depressive episodes. For the first time in what has probably been a good two months, I feel joyous again. Depression is not a new issue to me. It isn't even an obvious one. It is simply another aspect of my personality which comes and goes. 


The past two months have been a little strange. I can't really remember what it was that triggered all of this   but three nervous breakdowns, two bottles of Mega B and one failed uni semester later I am starting to feel a lot like Melissa again. I am hopeful that this is how I will continue to feel.


What I have learnt from all of this is that "this too shall pass" because it always does. Always. No matter what you have done or what you are doing through, you can always redeem yourself. You can always start a new ending and you can always make something beautiful from something imperfect. 

A little break to gain clarity

Hey everyone :)


I just wanted to let you all know that I have not abandoned my blogging, in fact I am just taking a few weeks to assess where I am with my life and what I need to do in order to become the person on the outside that I am on the inside. I will be back bigger and better before you know it, I promise!


x Melissa

Aromatherapeutic oils

I have been thinking a lot about fragrances and scents lately. It intrigues me how the scents I love are hated by others, or how our bodies know that citrus is revitalising while lavender is soothing. I decided to find out a little about essential oils.


Jasmine: This is one of my favourite scents. It reminds me of my childhood as we had a huge jasmine vine up one side of the house. The scent and the essential oil have an exotic floral fragrance with the potential to help with nervous tension. Apparently, it can also restore sexual confidence.


Patchouli: Contrary to popular belief; people who are conscious of the environment, or 'hippies' as they are otherwise known, don't always wear patchouli. Having said this, the scent is associated with love and peace. It has a rich earthy scent which is used for energy and for feeling grounded and connected to our roots.


Rose: Roses are very much associated with women. It is no wonder, since rose oil is so beneficial for us. It is used to balance hormones and is great for our reproductive organs as well as enhancing sexuality.


Sandalwood: While I have never ben a huge fan of this fragrance, it does wonders for our bodies. The deep woody scent that is sandalwood induces a state of calm and serenity. It also aids in sexual restoration in both men and women.

HTW: Building a terrarium

I have something to admit: I have two green thumbs. I have two veggie patches and a fruit patch which I am tending slowly. If I ever managed to have a day off from working, uni and writing I would probably spend it in the garden. We don't all have the space for a full on garden though. So today, I wanted to share something beautiful with you; the art of creating a terrarium.


A terrarium is a contained environment which is designed to hold small plants under a controlled condition. Because of the aspect of control, you are essentially able to create your terrarium to look like anything from a desert to a rainforest. Terrariums are also very small, about the size of a necklace pendant even, however, yours can be whatever size you wish it to be.


1. The container: First of all you need to find something for your terrarium to live inside of. It is most common to use a glass bowl however you could use anything really. An opened space will be easier to maintain whilst a closed one harder. It is really up to your skill level.


2. Sand: To start off your terrarium you want to lay down a layer of course sand or pebbles at the bottom of your container. This will allow for water to drain away from the plants and stop them from rotting.


3. Activated Charcoal: This step is only needed if you are making a closed terrarium. The charcoal is used to filter oxygen and keep everything fresh. You can buy this from a pet store in the fish section.


4. Spaghnum Moss: This moss is now placed on top of your sand in an open terrarium or on top of the charcoal in a closed terrarium. This prevents the soil from settling down into the lower layers and essentially destroying your creation.


5. Soil: Now this is where the fun really begins! Just plain old regular potting soil will work fine for this step. Just lay down a thick enough layer that the plants will take to the soil and continue to grow.


6. Plants: You want to select plants which will not grow any larger than a bonsai tree for this stage. Terrariums are supposed to be relatively small so the plants should be also. Try to be careful that your planting scheme is aesthetically pleasing so that you will love it forever. 


7. Decorations: If you choose to, you can add ornaments or decorations to your terrarium to make it look even nicer. This is basically the same as decorating a fish tank.

Teeny tiny hiatus

Morning lovelies! I just wanted to announce that because of all these recent storms my home Internet is basically non-existence meaning I can't get on here and post anything substantial. It should be resolved before the new week but just in case I wanted to say that I still love you all and will be back before you know it :) x Melissa

HTW: Writing a thank you note

I remember when I was younger I would receive handwritten letters in the mail. They would be thick with  personality and had been carefully created for my eyes only. I do miss those simple days sometimes. While it is socially acceptable to reply with text, emails, pokes and messages, I am not sure it is alright to reply to a gift or kind gesture with an electronic thank you. Today I wanted to share with you a little old school pen to paper etiquette.


1. Stationery: Depending on how much you wish to write, you will want nothing larger than a greeting card sized piece of paper. Try to use a piece which looks nice, or at the least has not been simply torn from a book. Since you should handwrite this, you will also need a pen.


2. Spelling: For obvious reasons, you want to be sure your spelling is correct as you can't exactly fall back on spell check. It is crucial to actually get the person's name right! I can not stress this enough! My Mum's name is Leeanne and about 60% of the time her name is spelt wrong. It says to me that people can't be bothered to look up her correct spelling, so make sure to check the spelling first.


3. Thank you: This is a thank you note, so you want to start your letter with "thank for the gift/favour/help". Try not to start talking about yourself.


4. Money: Don't mention money. Instead of writing "thanks for the $20", swap it for "thanks for your generous gift". It simply sounds nicer.


5. Application: Tell the note recipient how you will be using their gift. I am sure they would love to know how their gift is/has benefitted you. That was the idea after all. 


6. The future: Mention the past and allude to the future in your note. Something along the lines of "It was great seeing you last Thursday - am looking forward to catching up with you in the coming weeks". 


7. Mail: Once you think you have said all you can, and that it looks beautiful, then it is time for mail this bad boy. Snail mail is fun and exciting to receive so grab yourself a stamp and pop it into your nearest post box. 

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