Three words to summarise 2025 so far: Blood, Sweat & Tears

Several weeks ago, I saw a meme that asked “In Three words Describe 2025 so far.” For me, it is Blood, Sweat, and Tears.

The past few months have not been easy for me. The blood refers to the heavy periods and my 27-day period of bleeding. Sweat sums up how unbearably hot this summer has been for me. I grew up in the tropics. I love the heat. I love summer, but not this year. As I go through Peri-menopause, I have been feeling uncomfortably hot. It is quite not the hot flashes, where you are drenched in sweat. But I have been waking up at 2, 3, or 4am feeling too hot to sleep. Some days, I walk around Melbourne in a tank top when everyone else has a light coat or jumper to keep them warm. It means aggressively fanning myself with the song sheet at church to feel comfortable. It also means constantly having the AC on to feel comfortably cool. Wish me luck with my next electric bill. I always felt sad when summer ended and autumn came. It meant the cool months were coming. This year, I actually welcomed the arrival of the cooler seasons. Who am I? And the tears, oh the tears… They have been rolling down my cheeks from a recent break-up.