The best of company.

One thing I was really afraid of when anticipating the move down to this little town by the sea, was the death of my social life and the exclusion from society. (Sorry, I have a tendency of exaggerating when I'm happy)  but lets be real, it was scary! And the funny thing is, I have been blessed with so much company over the short time I have been here that I reflect back on the times I lost a lot of sleep over it and now think: "what was all that fuss about eh?!" 

I must say, its been a beautiful transition for me and I've been spoilt with some pretty awesome company in the new year, and some pleasant surprises along with it too.

This guy came along for a well-deserved break from offshore rigs and measuring oil well depths to "coincidentally" spend my birthday week with me. Hey, I wasnt complaining! I'm glad to be hosting in my small little flat and fussing over people ever since I was exiled. (warned you about exaggerating). It was his first time in Europe having studied in the States and I think I have convinced him that being British is far more fun! 

And then what about this champ eh! Bought his flight tickets even before requesting for office leave, then randomly booking a car the day before driving down to pick me up from work. Before his trip we were chatting about how I had moved from Manchester and that it was really quiet with nothing much to do. And he said, "It's okay. We'll come and save you. We'll be your knights!". I have the sweetest friends right?! So to say thank you, I made them my (almost) famous pancakes! Must say though, I'm a little rusty and it wasnt my best batch! But they being very polite guests, downed it anyway!

^^Taking them round my hood!^^

Then last Sunday, it was all about this guy right here running the Brighton Half-Marathon and burning tarmac while at it! Yeap, thats him running dead last! We specifically asked him what time his race was to start the night before and knowing what he was like, we probably should have double-checked it! When we got near the starting mile, I pointed out to him, "Hey Qasim... Why do I see people already running?" and he casually says, "naahh, they're probably just warming up." Guess what, the run had already started and he was 25 minutes behind!! But, he made up for time and ran a personal best of 2:03:33! It was so inspiring, he's making me think again about joining the Hastings Half-Marathon coming up next month!

^^And here is Qasim's cheerteam, ending the day with some much deserved tea, scones and cake. I bet he couldnt have done it without us shrieking words of encouragement and maybe slightly embarrassing him while at it. Lol! 

Despite the pretty awesome company I've had recently though, I am going through a strange bout of homesickness. Most of my family are currently performing their umrah at the moment and going through their pictures in the WhatsApp group just brings a slight twinge of longing to be with them. Their umrah jogs back a lot of memories for me when I was doing mine early last year. And lately I've always gone to bed thinking how lucky I am that Allah has granted my prayers in more ways than one. Even when my iman (faith) hasnt been in the best of shape. Its a great reminder though, and it sure makes me want to be better for Him. It'll be the least I can do for being grateful and saying thank you. 

Anyways, hope you've enjoyed catching up with me! Lol.

Have a great rest of the week folks! 

P xx