One Month in Norway: What a month of reflection taught me

The woman who came here is not the woman returning

It’s been a month since I landed in Norway. Ten of those days were spent tucked away in a small cabin in the Highlands, quiet, still, stripped back to the basics. In those 10 days, I saw 3 humans, a dog and 3-4 cars driving by.

Once back from the cabin to my brother’s studio apartment, I attended Sage Robbins’ She’s Unstoppable Summit, poured myself into content creation that keeps me accountable for my own growth, and spent hours journaling. Deep, sometimes messy, sometimes liberating hours. I let myself look at what hurt. I sat with the questions I usually avoid. I opened pages of my soul I hadn’t touched in years.

And here’s the thing: the last thirty days may not sound like much. But they have been in a cocoon. Not because everything was easy, it wasn’t. There were long hours of silence, moments of emotional wobble, and the ache of being homesick. But in that stillness, I found something I didn’t expect: Myself.

The day before I left, someone close to me said:

“Look around, because the woman who’ll be back won’t be the same.”

And it was true.

Because the woman who came here was still carrying more than she realised.

And the woman who is returning has put some of it down. She is clearer. She is softer. She is stronger. She is no longer afraid to say what she wants, to own her desires, to stand on her own side.

This time around, Norway has been more than a trip. It’s been a threshold. A place where I learned that I don’t have to wait for the “perfect time” to grow. I just need to show up, every day, in the writing, in the creating, in the reflections that no one else sees.

And while I’m ready to go home now, deeply ready, craving my own space, I know this:

I won’t be walking back into my life as the same woman who left.

I’ll be walking in as the woman who dared to pause, reflect, and rise.

Journaling Prompt:

“What has my last season of life changed in me, and how am I returning different from the person who began it?”

Call to Action

Sometimes the biggest shifts happen in the quietest places. If you’re craving your own cocoon, a pause, a reset, a chance to return to yourself, explore my soul-led journaling resources in the Midlife by Design library. They’re designed to hold you steady through change.