There’s something so magical about living in the city. I have a second-floor corner bedroom which overlooks the lights of the city and there’s just something about looking out across that endless field of fairy lights that calms me. When I get home at 4am and I’ve been buzzing away playing Madame Social Butterfly, I sit in silence and realise that I’ve just spent a good eight hours constantly moving, constantly interacting with people and noise, and not once in that eight hours did I experience any measure of quiet, of stillness.

So, when I get home and make myself a mug of tea (or a bottle of water depending on the season!) and I just relax back in my chair by the window, I feel so. Fucking. Peaceful. And. Calm. It’s so easy to get caught up in all the daily bullshit that constantly circles around in my head, fabricating worries and anxieties where they need not linger. During these times when I’m sitting in the dark, enjoying a silent vigil with the city, I remind myself that this is all temporary and nothing matters except the present moment and the way you treat your fellow citizens of the planet.

It’s almost as if the onslaught of noise and enjoyment and constant people and conversation takes up so much space in my mind and drains my energy so much that by the end of a big night out with friends, my brain and body have decided “no more, Akika. Time to just be still and chill.” It’s awesome and I highly recommend making yourself a little nook that calms your farm, a place where you can retreat after a hectic night or bender or festival, where you can just focus on the nothingness coming into your ears and your mind, and just remember that you are enough, on your own. And you can feel that this world is an incredible place to be at any given moment.

Love, Akika xoxoxoxooxoxoxoxxo