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Writer's pictureAnn Yebei

New Beginnings: Ending Spring and Greeting the Rains

Diary Entry #6: February-May 2024

 

A woman of color with a kinky curly Afro is soaking the sun Infront of her window. She has a small white dog on her shoulder.
New Beginnings

This reflection will be a seasonal one- from February up until now.


A number of things have changed: I’ll be prioritizing the Blog and my Work more than the YouTube Channel, and I need to decide what to do with TikTok. And I forgot Pinterest exists! I’ve been told it’s handy for my Blog’s growth! Otherwise, my YT Channel’s automated videos came to their end in April and last month was the time to plan and bulk up content for the next season of 3-4 months. 


A few things are behind, but the plan remains.


A photo over a person's shoulder as they are taking notes inside a narrow notebook with a pen. Background is blurry past their knees on which the notebook is.
Here's to Slowing Down to Enjoy Life, Not Win over Life

I feel blessed for the friendships I have, have made, and the growth visible in myself. In the past, long-distance relationships were not only undesirable, but difficult for me. After years of regular movement between countries, cities, and homes, at a point, I stopped expecting and believing in long-term relationships.


So once a long-distance friendship comes to existence, I start emotionally shifting the way things will be going forward. Maintaining contact is a hard thing for me to do- due to presence of mind, but also the lack of in-person contact.


Now, as I schedule monthly, or bi-weekly, video calls with friends, I can say I do believe in long-distance romance. No matter the number of nations and seas between us, it’s not a matter of if I can keep a friendship, but if I will. Hopefully this tale of my own growth in social health will inspire someone to hold onto their dear ones and honor time spent with them.


Visiting family before I started my February internship in my hometown was a welcome and restful time. While we did move around a lot to see my grandparents, who live about an hour away, and various cousins and aunts and uncles, I found it interesting that I rested so deeply when I was in Eldoret. Could it have been a more familiar and comfortable altitude? 


Maybe.


Highlights

Spiritual Life


A photo of a woman of color with rouge pink lipstick and what seems to be the top of a black sports bra. They have a short pixie hair cut in black. She is looking towards the light source of the photo while in light sweat.
Practicing Embracing the Breaking for Growth

I am currently thriving! And wrestling! And...kinda dying a little bit here (insert cute crying emoji).


Very grateful for this season in my life where I don’t have responsibilities to anyone, or anything, apart from myself and showing up every day and in each moment to build my Life with God. I’ve been enjoying my QT (Quiet Time) with God and adding snack time with it! So it feels more like an intimate date and time spent with God, not just another study hour to tick off the To Do List for the day.


Another habit fixed in, that’s been welcome, are my morning prayers. It's been helpful to ground and align myself into the Spirit before I start my day. Because I really need it as I'm building godliness within myself through the Spirit! it's been a struggle these past couple of weeks, but I know the sweat breaking is a good sign than nothing happening!!


I joined an upcoming Young Adult fellowship in late February and it’s been a blessing. God making the way, as He does, and I pray this community only grows and flourishes even more. I look forward to also connecting and making a family with another church I visited last Sunday to connect with the DHH community as they have a Kenyan Sign Langauge service in the morning. 


Work Life: Business Status


So I made my blog an LLC last October, but…I forgot to check what filing 2023 taxes for an LLC was like. So…that’s late. Otherwise, I’ve finished Kenyan and US taxes for last year. 


Back shot of a woman in a blue sweater top pis looking at a narrow wall of wooden DIY wall decor. She has pale brown wavy-curly hair and a nay green over-the-shoulder bag. On the shelves to her left and right are papers of various colors and sizes.
Life can be Overwhelming; Here's to One Step Every Day

Just asking for prayers on the LLC!


This is my first LLC, so I remind myself that there's no better time to make mistakes, build organizational skills, and just...go up.


Relationship Status


I was on Hinge up until, I believe, April. And as I’ve focused on growing closer to God and practicing being known by Him and knowing Him, my need for a partner became less of a stressor. I still pray for a godly partner and I look forward to it, but it’s no longer a big goal for me, because, for one, I need a job (my own self-establishment), and, secondly, I’m more concerned about the state of my soul than my future sex life.


Of course, purity is still a challenge. I can really feel what they mean when they say you’re picking your cross daily. It’s a daily, conscious, and intentional choice every day to live a certain way and access success for that day in a very particular way.


Working on dying to myself.


An Asian-presenting man is giving a small smile to the camera with his elbows on the table. Has a Dark full-sleeved sweater on with the sleeves pulled back to show his forearms as he perches his hands together in front of his chest.
Aspirations are not Necessities

The other angle has to do with my profession. As a therapist, I'll create many intimate bonds with my clients, but, as it is, I can't keep those connections outside of work. So I pray not to meet a compatible person in therapy! Not only will I have to transfer that client elsewhere pronto, but if I meet someone and they know a former client…it could get dicey.


Possibly.

Very Possibly.


A black-presenting woman looking up with a questioning look.  hand is hovering at her chin.
Exploring How to Date as a Young Professional

That will be a pinned post coming soon- about post-therapy relationships! I am conscious of my mercy-giving inclinations and how I love sharing information, psychoeducation, and clarifying misunderstandings. However, I cannot relate with clients, which can make the visible possibility of a friendship unfortunate. I try not to live under fear of dating someone and then my work coming up as a deal–breaker.


I'm trusting God with everything. That, I can do with confidence.


Lowlights

Unemployed and Seeking, cont.


Since mid-February, I started interning at Chiromo Hospital Group’s Bustani Branch in Nairobi. It was a pleasant 3 months and I’m currently back to job searching after a season of returning to my craft and cleaning off the dust that was settling on my skill and memory.


A couple are walking down a tarmacked sidewalk with a clear umbrella over them. Both are Asian-presenting, the man is holding the umbrella over them as they looked at each other. On the right are balconies of an apartment building and to the left is a line of trees behind a bush.
Hello Early Rains 2024: Practicing the Art of Creation and Connection

Seeing this “hardening” in skills over the unemployment duration since my OPT in the States is concerning and a wake-up call. The call to stay in the field has never been louder, and the spiritual discomfort of not being able to serve and practice is a welcome one.


On one hand, the translation of my foreign documents is nearly done at the KNQA (which will help immensely, I’ve been told, in my job searching) and while I’ve acquired my government certification as a mental health therapist, the announcement that my official license is ready for pick up (which I need to practice in Kenya) is upcoming.


In the meanwhile, I’ll work hard to show up more consistently for my daily study hall hour (reviewing as though I was studying for the American National Counselors Examinations) and applying for work in Nairobi. 


Conclusions


It’s amazing how quickly time passes by. I was just in Malaysia in December 2023 and now it’s been 5 months since I was in the States. A part of me finds it hard to fully wrap my head around it while the other part of me is just looking forward and working on the tasks at hand from God.


Wherever you guys are at in your 2024 journeys, I wish you all the best. Here’s to crossing off major milestones over the next few weeks!


 

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