My sister recently reminded me of the time I spent 2 months living in a tent in the middle of Hungary, part of a group from Edinburgh University helping to build an eco-village.

For many years it was top of mind - my immediate answer to the ‘tell us something we wouldn’t know about you’ question.

And yet I had almost forgotten.

Looking back now it seems incredible - both the experience itself, and the process of getting there:

I wasn’t at that university.
The students who organised the trip didn’t know me.
I had no building or camping experience.

And yet, at the time it felt like an easy and natural thing to do:

I wanted a similar kind of experience to one I’d had after A levels, when we met a group from Edinburgh in India.
I couldn’t find it at my university.
I found out they were running a trip and asked if they would let me join.

I haven’t done anything like it since - and in some ways I can’t quite believe I did! - but when I reflect back, I can see how the experience defined and shaped the path to the person I am now.

It reminds me that if something feels right:

It’s OK to be the exception to the rule.
It’s always worth having the conversation.
It’s worth stretching out of my comfort zone to expand my horizons.

It’s good to remember - and not just for me.

We all have past versions that have shaped who we are today, but so often we can forget about them - or feel they’re not relevant if they’re not directly connected to our current goal.

And yet they all add up and contribute to who we are and how we are now - we just need to remember they’re in there so we can draw on them.

What’s something you’ve done in the past that people wouldn’t know about you now?

And what did it teach you that would be useful to remember now?

Wishing you all a week of remembering the experiences that got you here,