Promises

I find it hard to believe but it was exactly a year ago that I moved to my apartment. (Well, it was actually February 29th but, of course, there isn't one this year.) Looking back, it was a more significant step than perhaps it felt even at the time. It was a decision that took root a long time before it bore fruit. There was a lot of hard work, both before I moved (I must have 'decluttered' about 50% of my lifetime's accrued possessions!) and afterwards, when the flat required a major refurbishment. 

Was it the right thing to do? YES, without a doubt! I feel very contented, settled, safe and peaceful here. It's very convenient in so many ways - location and layout - and has led to me making new friends, as well as feeling very comfortable to invite all my old friends here. Of course, none of us know what the future holds but I feel that I have 'future-proofed' to the best of my ability. 

I'm very aware too that, as with all my house moves, I can trace what I view as God's firm holding and guidance from start to finish of the process, even though it seemed to take an interminable amount of time to achieve. (His timing is never the same as my impatience!) Considering I was so picky about what I wanted, I feel very fortunate to have secured a beautiful apartment in exactly the location I most favoured. You don't always get what you want - but in this case I really feel blessed that I did. After all the upheaval, I'm now settling back into a rhythm and finding time to enjoy my hobbies, my family and friends, and the riches of the lovely area in which I live. 

The year's anniversary seemed to warrant a celebration... so I've bought myself a new camera! I like and will continue to use my existing mirrorless Fuji XT2 but it's quite bulky and I've been finding it increasingly heavy. My intention is to continue to use that for those times when I go out specifically to take photographs. For the times (frequent) when I'm just out for a walk and might take photos, this new one is small and light enough to take along in my pocket or handbag, just in case. Yes, I did think about getting a new phone with a better camera but camera phones still have limitations so in the end this was the choice I made: a Panasonic Lumix LX100 II. It has a small, fixed, zoom lens and plenty of capability for the things I like to take photos of. Most of the controls are on the outside so you don't have to fiddle with accessing the menu to make changes. That's also a feature of my Fuji so it feels quite familiar. I've hardly familiarised myself with it yet. 

The photo of Saltaire's church (above) was one of the first images I made with it.