So, you’ve made your way into the marsh. Welcome!

I made ‘Into the Marsh’ as a memoir of how I continuously try to reclaim my life. And paid quite a hefty sum to secure the domain to cut short any excuse I may have to put it off. “You pay in US dollar every year for this website; you’d better quit lazying around and do something with it!”

You might ask, then, why do I need to reclaim my life? And perhaps, are you in need of doing exactly the same?

Well, have you ever noticed that the older you get, the faster the years seem to pass by?

That is exactly what terrifies the living daylight out of me. Ever since I started working, which was back in 2014, every year has seemed to whiz by.

I used to remember birthdays, read a ton, make time to write — for fun and not for work, be amazed by little things, have more patience and passion, dedicate part of myself for volunteering, and was in general happier.

But lately, I barely have time to talk to my mom as often. I distance myself from my old friends. I let romance go out of the window in my relationship. I become more cynical. On top of that, I have been feeling lost, detached, and insecure. And that is weird because it all happens while, from the outside, I look like I am living a perfect life.

Picture this: a top student turned a rising star at one of the most respected PR firms in my city, traveling the world for work. I earn enough to support my single-mom. I have diverse groups of friends who are all very supportive and an amazing boyfriend for almost six years now. That was the “personal branding” I liked to portray.

Yet, I’m not happy. Or, more precisely, not as happy as I can be. I’m not living the life that I wanted myself to live: a meaningful one. I let my busy schedules and what seems like a constant fatigue get between myself and the life I envision. “I’ve been working hard the whole week. I deserve to have the whole weekend just chilling and binge-watching on Netflix! Not contemplating or accommodating other people!” And before I knew it, I’d let a whole year pass.

It seems easy. Justified. But allowing routines and exhaustion to rule the way I live my life has transformed me into a person I despise.

So, I made this blog in a mission to reclaim my life, discover my old self (or rather, an updated version of my old self — with bug fixes and continuous improvements), and along the way share with you some of the most important lessons I gain.

I hope my stories will help you go through your confusion, frustration, or even mid-life crises — both work-related and on life in general.

Ready?

Credits:

Photograph by Anchor Lee