There was a beach here with a sunset point that we went to on both days. The first day, there was a girl about my age on the beach reading a book. I very much wanted to know what she was reading but for some reason, she’d angled it oddly, so no one could see. Just as we were about to leave, I dipped my head sideways and caught a glimpse of ‘CLARE’ on the cover and the unmistakable Izzy Lightwood tattooed on the front – it was City of Fallen Angels. She was so engrossed, she wouldn’t even look up from it when her mom asked her if she wanted a pair of earrings from the hawker nearby. And I could gauge her personality – to some extent – from that little gesture.

It’s the little things that stay with me – ‘people watching’ in my mom’s (and Conan Gray’s) words. Or silently letting the waves wash over your feet, staring out at the horizon. Just wondering how there may seem to be a point where the sky meets the sea, but in actuality, it isn’t. This was one of those things – the special memories. Things that you can’t quite put into words, but are magical in their own way.

A quick update on what I’ve been loving lately: Last night, I was up till 11, tears in my eyes, scribbling down my report for school on The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas. It was so touching, yet so disturbing?! I had to watch the whole thing in one go and ended up loving it so much – it was so innocent.

I think any movie about the Holocaust (this one, The Book Thief, Jojo Rabbit, Saving Private Ryan) will be a tear-jerker – with a sad ending. I definitely recommend it if you want to watch something. I’m also currently re-reading Chain of Iron in anticipation of Chain of Thorns in a couple of months. Clockwork Princess’s epilogue still has the same effect on me that it did two years ago. Gosh, the nostalgia when I finished reading them!

And I’ve been listening to a couple of new artists lately – Niall Horan, Maisie Peters, and Nessa Barret. Here’s my ‘i lived like an island’ playlist (in honour of living on islands for the last week, of course, but just a couple of songs we listened to on the trip.)

I hope you’ve been happy, safe, and healthy, wherever you are, in your little corner of the world. I hope that for me too, with how crazy life’s been lately.

(And thank you to Isha because I don’t think this post would’ve been up if it weren’t for your emails, back and forth during vacation, encouraging me to write. Sometimes simple words mean SO much <3)

And one last bit of news – I’ve gotten back to my first draft and started editing my book! So we know what I’m going to be doing this NaNoWriMo, I suppose. Until next time xx