“Everyone I grew up around knew that is the girl who’d someday move to Australia. But it was not supposed to happen the way I did- in great haste. I had recently lost my sibling, and we were all trying to make sense of what had happened. All of us at home were trying to process grief in our own ways, which is when we felt that one of us need to step out of that picture to gain better clarity of life and help others to get out of that situation as well. I told myself I should relocate. It was a difficult period, but I knew I had to get through this for the sanity of our minds. My cousins were already living in Australia, and we all are closely knit. I had visited this place twice before signing up for expat life. Luckily, I found a job opening at the Australian office of the company I was working for and successfully cracked the interview. So this way, I had already landed a job before my international trek began. I have always been a workaholic, but I soon realised how work-life balance could be a whole different narrative here. It looked like a fair chance to reinvent myself. This place taught me how to be in the change. Initially, I was quite frustrated about it. I would soldier through a sea of homesickness and would introspect often. I was also used to living in a spacious room which I soon found can cost a fortune here. One has to stretch the legs according to the coverlet and budget responsibly- something I could only learn with experience. My first apartment hunt made me more an adult in life. It taught me how to be in the reality of what I want vs what I can have at this moment. Halfway through the process, I grasped that I don’t always need to run after perfection. I just have to find something and start living with it. I learnt how to compromise. Once I could grab hold of my life and work schedule, I thought to join the theatre. And I am so glad I did that. Discovering people from a different background and enacting together in a team where one could express herself is so liberating. I could say I have finally found my tribe there.”