My parents took me to Africa and then to New Zealand when I was fifteen and I hated it absolutely hated it, mum hated it it was awful. They were there for eight years by then of course I had grown up and my parents moved over to Perth where my dad's brother had emigrated to and I went to Sydney to live with friends.
I loved Australia from the beginning much better than NZ for me and I also still missed family and had constant thoughts of returning to England as still did my Mum.
In those days it was way out of everyone's league to just hop on a plane like I can now.
I married a Scot who was at sea and returned to England to live and hated it at first then I got to love it. My husband never had any intention of staying in England as he hated the weather so we then came back to Australia and I hated it here missed all those things that were familiar in England.
We survived I worked we had children here and we have been back to the UK but neither of us would return to live now. My mum went to live in the UK when I was 17 took my brother and stayed a year and then came back. She went over lots of times and Dad didn't until he retired and they went for three months, stayed a month and came back early.
Life is what we make it wherever we live. We being older like a quiet life when I was young I loved the city and all that goes with it. Now its the space and quiet places we enjoy.
If I want to know what is happening in UK I read the online papers, my cousins keep me uptodate and husband's family.
I just regret that my mum and I spent so many years yearning for something that actually only existed in our minds. When I am in the UK now it does not look like the UK I remember it looks just like down town Melbourne, Sydney any other big city with all different people of every colour and culture.
My children have british citizenship my son will not return, maybe my daughter will who knows its their life and they have to live it and I am happy for them to live wherever they like, after all we have.
I too do cbt and we call them ants the thoughts that you do not want.
