I love my Helsinki apartment

My safe place

I live alone in my apartment in Helsinki. I enjoy living alone so much that I can’t imagine sharing with anyone. But hey, that wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been proven wrong. For now, let’s just say that I love my own space.

I’m proud of where I live, but that wasn’t always the case. Thinking about this has forced me to remember a very painful moment in my life.

I found this apartment when I was in a very difficult situation. I don’t want to get into it, but let’s just say that I stumbled upon this place. I had just come out of a relationship and needed to find a new place quickly. Emotionally and mentally drained, I took what I could get. It just happened to be here.

On my first night, I slept on the floor. I didn’t have any furniture, a bed, or a couch—nothing. All I had was my bag of clothes, which I used as a pillow. Isn’t it amazing that we can look back at difficult situations and laugh about them?

What people don’t tell you about moving to a new country is how many little things you simply don’t know how to do. My first night here, there was no power, no lights. I bought a few candles from the store and some plastic cutlery. I felt like my life had come to an end. Yes, it’s pretty rich of me to say that while living in a country like Finland, in my own apartment. But hey, emotions are emotions. And my emotions had me spiraling. I was lost and alone in a strange country. The feeling of home was further from me than the stars in the sky. I was lying on the ground in a fetal position, not wanting to move. I felt lonelier than I could ever remember feeling.

I’m not telling you this story to make you feel sorry for me. I’m telling you this story because I want to take a moment to celebrate how different I feel today. I also want to remind you that we humans are incredible and we find ways to adapt and move on if we allow ourselves to.

It’s a public holiday in Helsinki today. It feels incredibly peaceful. There is a calmness in the air, and I’m enjoying every second of it. This city is special to me. I’ve been to a few other places like Oslo, Copenhagen, and Stockholm, but there is something about the calm here that is hard to describe. To truly appreciate it, you have to be alright with just… being. Ok, I know that sounds cringe, but I don’t have time to explain it right now.

I was sitting here, thinking about what exciting adventure I could go on and film, but I just randomly started thinking about how happy I am with where I live. I’m not just talking about the city or country right now. I started thinking about my apartment and what makes a place truly feel like home.

It’s actually pretty ridiculous because a lot of the time I would much prefer to stay at home than go out to a bar or something. Like, why? If I wanted to get a drink, I could simply go to the grocery store right next door and get a drink from there. I won’t go so far as to say that I’m a recluse, but I don’t go out of my way to leave the house if I don’t need to. If I did want to go for a walk or something, there are really nice parks and views in the vicinity. And I do often enjoy going for walks.

I guess what I’m trying to get at is the fact that life is mundane at times. It might feel like the same old same old. I get it. But every now and then, we need to remember how beautiful normal is. We so easily take the most amazing things for granted at times. The fact that I can walk around my apartment and be lazy is brilliant. I don’t know about you, but I sometimes feel like I’m not living a life as exciting as I see online. But I have to constantly remind myself that what I see on places like Instagram are the best moments of someone’s life. At times, not even that. Trying to compare my life with that is silly.

The best thing we can do for this world is learn how to be grateful for the little blessings that find their way to us.

Watch the Youtube video here