My city – The City of Liverpool. I’ve always had a bit of an affiliation with this place. My Grandad hails from here, my Dad was a Liverpool fan, and in truth – whenever the toughest times in my life have hit, it always seems to have been there as a sort of safety net to catch me. After Dad died, it scooped me up and allowed me to spend what were probably three of the happiest years of my life here – at uni – living on my own, learning how to fend for myself, surrounded by an extended group of friends and having the most fun I’ve ever had – care free!
And now, since March of this year, I have made a return - this time to work. It’s strange because I’d usually consider myself much more of a country girl at heart, but there’s something about being surrounded by smiling Scouse faces, by that infamous accent, by the ‘bants’ and the ‘giggles’, the ‘dolly birds’ and the ‘Scouse brows’ – it’s infectious. It’s one of those cities where, unless it needs to be – nothing is ever taken too seriously, yet there’s a sense of community spirit similar to that you’d find somewhere much smaller, somewhere much more intimate.
Having such a connection with what I find to be such a wonderful place, really does make me feel proud to be part of it; I work in one of the most beautiful buildings on the iconic waterfront – The Port of Liverpool – that, each time I wander into work in the morning, gives me an enormous sense of pride knowing I can say I’m part of the history that it represents. When I was in uni, my then boyfriend and I would, whenever we could, get hold of tickets for a match at Anfield and would stand there for 90 minutes in the freezing cold – singing YNWA, wrapped in red scarves, clutching our cheese and onion pies and hot cups of Bovril – and I loved it. It made me feel part of something – part of something that I want to feel part of again.
Recently, the 2 ½ hour commute I face each morning has started to take its toll what with everything else I’ve had going on, and so, I decided it was time to stop waiting until Prince Charming turned up/I won the lottery so that I could buy the mansion down the road I’ve had my eye on :’) Instead, it’s now time to spend some time, with me, for me, in the place I like to think of as my second home. When you walk through a storm and all that…
Here’s to new beginnings.
Sarah x
