Adulting is excruciatingly difficult! But I guess I had to grow up at some point, and take responsibility for the rest of my life. That doesn’t mean that I have to like the process, though. Not even on Mondays…
At the ripe old age of 46, I am finally getting on my own two feet emotionally. It’s not easy, because I have always had a cushion under my butt for when I stumble, and finding my own way in this craziness we call life is not without its challenges and pitfalls.
However, my mom is getting older, and I can’t rely on my other family members and relatives to pick up the slack when she’s not there anymore, so I guess this had to happen at some point or another.
My main goal for 2023 is to establish myself as a writer and blogger to such an extent that I can work from any place on the planet. Those projects might even include a YouTube channel, but only if I can find a good voice-over artist. I may talk a helluvalot, but I hate the way my voice sounds in a recording, all breathy and stuff. It’s not something I can help but it won’t go over well on air.
And I want to add to the challenge by moving to Europe. I considered Portugal for a while, but then Putin invaded Ukraine and my whole perspective shifted.
You see, I found the answer to my frustrations on 24 February 2022. I was in a dead-end government job, feeling extremely unappreciated and that my life had no purpose or meaning to it. And then a nation stood up, saying to the world “we are here, and we’re going nowhere!”
Ukrainians have shiny spines, and they don’t go around with begging bowls in their hands. Instead, they reminded the rest of the world of the agreements that were signed in 1991 and demanded that those terms be honored. They also went around showing what they are already capable of, and merely asked for the West to empower their already excellent work. And – needless to say – the West complied.
Ukraine is a war zone, especially the Eastern half, and many villages, towns, and cities have been razed to the ground, with their inhabitants either dead or in hiding. But it still has a fully functioning government and civil service and law and order prevail where the orcs aren’t. That is what I saw when I made my choice to move there.
I saw people from all walks of life working together to pull off what can only be described as a superhuman humanitarian effort, keeping soldiers fed, clothed, and equipped. I saw those roads that were shot up on a Monday morning perfectly repaired by the Thursday of that same week. I saw how technicians work crazy hours under extremely difficult conditions to repair power stations that have been all but completely destroyed. I saw the spirit of the people of Ukraine, and I fell in love.
That does not detract anything from the quality of the leadership of Ukraine. President Volodymir Zelenskyy stood up with his whole team one night in Kyiv to declare that “we are here!” and they haven’t left! And while some international leaders paled in comparison, others also stood up. Ukraine has leaders that are worth following.
That doesn’t mean that they don’t have faults. They are humans, after all, not gods. But when it mattered, they acted, and the whole world saw what they did.
But I digress… (Always wanted to say that!)
After a long discussion with those in the know, I have figured out a relatively simple, legal way for me to move to Ukraine that wouldn’t cost me an arm, a leg, and a kidney. What I need to do, is to register a Limited Liability Company in Ukraine and then hire myself as its CEO.
Simple, yes, but not easy. Why? Well, because there is a war on! That means that entry is restricted to those who are directly involved in that war either as soldiers or as volunteers on various humanitarian projects. Or visiting dignitaries, of course. I am none of the above, so I don’t qualify. Yet.
Instead, I have found a small law firm based in Kyiv and made the decision to trust them enough to give them power of attorney over my business in Ukraine. I received the Power of Attorney document template today and shall collect my passport on Wednesday morning.
What remains then is another hurry-up-and-wait game. The template letter has to be reviewed and notarized by my lawyer here, along with a copy of my passport’s face page, and then taken to Johannesburg to be apostilled. That is the expensive and time-consuming part of this project. The complicated part is getting those apostilled documents to Kyiv, as most courier companies don’t operate in Ukraine at the moment. I REALLY HATE RUSSIANS! I shall find out if I can’t send them via the Ukrainian Embassy. It won’t hurt to ask, would it?
While I wait, I shall work on a proper statement of purpose for the company, as well as mission and vision statements. I shall also be working on my command of the Ukrainian language. I have a good working knowledge of Ukrainian, but no technical vocabulary. I see some picture books in my future. Well, if that helps me to learn, then that’s cool!
Yes, I do sometimes get despondent, and I expect that there will be more bad days in my future when things simply don’t go as I want them to, but those are the days on which to pray and dream and remember that nothing that’s worth it, comes without effort. That’s why the expression says WORTH the EFFORT.
In the coming weeks, I am also going to work on my business plan. It’s a pretty vague outline in my head right now, but to make it work, I shall have to flesh it out a lot. I don’t want it to become just another “homestead-ey” blog/vlog kind of thing. There are enough of those around, and there are bigger things at stake here.
What I want to do, is to show Ukraine to the world. We have all seen the ugly bits, but I want to focus on the REBUILDING PROCESS and on the way in which Ukraine is finding its feet as an EU and NATO ally. I want to introduce the people and places to the rest of the world and work with Ukrainians to make their country a shining example of how a country should be run, efficiently and safely.
And with that declaration, I shall conclude.
As usual, I am going to request that you send some pocket change HERE. Every last cent is most welcome as it helps to keep this blog going and will also be used to fund various projects. Thank you kindly.