Behind The Glass with Charlotte Eriksson

I'm back ♡ I missed talking to you! I sold all my belongings and moved to Portugal. To start over, once more. Let's chat about it. Life is weird and strange and uncertain and absolutely wonderful. DM me your thoughts and stories on IG: @justaglasschild Find all my books and music and links at www.CharlotteEriksson.com “What is that feeling when you're driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? - it's the too-huge world vaulting us, and it's good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”― Jack Kerouac

A writing from my book Everything Changed When I Forgave Myself ♡ They say you can trace a person’s history, hidden emotions and unhealed scars in their appearance. How you act, how you walk, how you laugh. Do you have a broken heart? It shows. Are you in love? It shows. They say bad skin reveals stress or anxiety. Do you blink a lot or do you keep a steady gaze during a conversation? Do you talk clearly with strong support from your stomach, or do you speak quietly and fast, running over your words? Have you ever tried not to eat, just to keep some sort of focus? Sad people either sleep a lot or not at all. I often wonder what people see when they look at me. What energy do I send out? Do I look happy? Do I look sad? Do I look friendly? Do I look like someone you'd want to hang out with? Do I look like someone you could like? Do I look insecure, or like I'm strong and sure, a role model to follow? Do I look like someone who threw my fist into a mirror because I simply saw myself in there and couldn't stand the thought of it? People say there is sadness in my eyes but the sadness sits in my chest so I wonder what it is they see in my eyes.

An excerpt from my book Everything Changed When I Forgave Myself. Pick up a signed copy of my book in my store here, or find it on Amazon ♡ They tell me I have an interesting life. Going places, seeing people, and I shrug my shoulders as I pour another drink, sitting lonely on my floor in my empty room, another Sunday, in another city, like I’ve done so many times for so many years and they tell me I’m lucky and should be grateful. And yes, I am grateful. I was grateful walking lonely through a freezing Berlin on Christmas Eve last year and I was grateful as I lied about my name and job and age to everyone I met and meet and if you seek the papers where I’ve been the last years you will find nothing. Or at best, or worst, a spread-out girl leaving small traces here and there, covering it up with different states of mind or jobs or name and there was a time they said I would go places. I would go places, they said, once, way back when. And this is what I think of as I’m sitting lonely on the train home from another night of beautiful people, welcoming me into their homes with open arms. I played some songs and they hugged me like I’ve never been hugged before, by anyone who knows me, and they told me “thank you” and “I love you” and hugged me again, like I’ve never been hugged by anyone who knows me, and they were grateful. For me. And so was I. For them. Human interaction: the most complicated form of happiness I will never figure out.

This is a writing from my book Everything Changed When I Forgave Myself 🌱 "Youthful days are treasures and it has nothing to do with age. Still young, I guess, but I remember younger days. Wide-eyed on every bus to nowhere, everywhere, finding melodies and stories, people to love and lose and I opened up in different ways. Shared made-up pasts, shaped and designed to tell and sweep away like the poet that I am they tell me. Why tell them about me, when I can tell them about a different me?   ... but life grows you ignorant.    I’m walking on an empty country road  somewhere in Sweden  and I have no cares in the world.  I’ve fought and I’ve tried. I’ve seen things, I think to myself but I’m not happy with what I did or made of myself and I have no cares in the world. I spit over my shoulder, get drunk on empty roads  in the middle of the day, lying on fields in the cold, cursing how little I grew; how I did not make it. and I bought new shoes back then, a while ago, but still wear my old ones. no money in the bank, no birthday parties to get things wild for a little while. I have no cares in the world.   Time taught me to love old things. I’m collecting rings and jewelry and I wear them with tenderness, feeling holy, meditating by the water, in the forest, creating rituals to reach something higher, higher, higher --- I want to get higher or deeper, somewhere different than this plain, static sense of existence.  Love does the job. traveling too. writing does it. music.  also art, whisky, dark-colored flowers and watching the landscape change in October. Driving on a small road somewhere in Italy with a beautiful boy and I don’t want to be anywhere else in the whole wide world than right there, with him, in that very car, smiling. But I close my eyes for one second and the moment is gone. I’m back to getting high on empty roads somewhere in Sweden and I’m the loneliest girl in the whole damn world and I just want all things beautiful. I just want the music, the literature, the art and the moments of driving in a car with a beautiful boy in Italy. but here, alone, I have no cares in the world.  I have no cares in the world. I just want it all to be beautiful."

What does it actually mean to be an independent creator (artist, author, photographer...) and why did I become one? In this replay episode [from the archive!] I share my own story of how I built my little career and how you can too ♡ www.CharlotteEriksson.com

Come hang with me as I answer ALL the questions about vagabonding, loneliness, travel hacks and more! www.charlotteeriksson.com

The number 1 most popular episode of all time is back! “Your relationship with your future self is the most important relationship in your life.” Future me, whom I looked up to 3 years ago, is me now, and that’s why I feel so familiar with myself because I’ve communicated with future me for years. I’m really grateful to past me for putting in the work, pushing on, making plans, and creating, because without past me doing this, my life would look very different now. So when I go through hard times, I try to think about future me in a year from now, or just 6 months from now. What can I do today, that future me will be really really grateful for? What can I do today, to make life for future me a little easier and more beautiful? 💭 www.CharlotteEriksson.com 💭

Today we're diving into the topic of living a wandering or vagabonding life on a minimal budget. We'll explore how it is possible to create any lifestyle you want for yourself if you just want it bad enough. If you’re ready to sacrifice the lifestyle you have right now. If you’re willing to paint a little bit outside the box. We will talk about how to create a remote working career and what doors it might open up for you, how to be smart with your money, how to live simply and minimally, and how embracing solitude can unlock a life filled with incredible experiences and long-term travel. So, if you've ever dreamed of wandering the globe but thought, "I can't afford it" or "I'm not born into wealth" or "what about my job," this episode is for you. My goal in life is to show by example, how it’s possible to live a life on your own terms, a life that gets you excited to wake up every single morning, and how this life is 100% possible to create, if you just want it bad enough.  The books I'm mentioning in this episode are: The 4-hour work-week by Tim Ferriss Vagabonding by Rolf Potts On The Road by Jack Kerouac The Nomad by Isabelle Eberhardt Find all my books, links and story at www.CharlotteEriksson.com ♡

“What matters most is how well you walk through the fire.”― Charles Bukowski

“Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever so on the road.” ― Jack Kerouac, On the Road Hi! Let me introduce you to one of my absolute favorite writers, Jack Kerouac, and three incredible books that have had a profound impact on me as a writer: "On The Road," "The Dharma Bums," and "Big Sur." What makes Kerouac so special? Well, he believed in embracing the present moment and fully immersing oneself in life, breaking free from societal norms and expectations. His words beautifully captured the raw beauty and intensity of his experiences, treating life itself as a work of art. With his philosophy of "spontaneous prose," he encouraged writers to follow the natural rhythm and flow of their minds, avoiding rigid structures and rules. Trust me, once you dive into Kerouac's world, you'll understand why I'm so passionate about him! If you decide to pick up one of his books, I'd love to hear about your experience. 🤍 Don't forget to share and subscribe so you never miss an episode! And if you're curious about my own books and music, you can find them all at www.charlotteeriksson.com. Keywords: Jack Kerouac, Beat poets, Charles Bukowski, nomadic living, minimalism, Beat poetry, On the Road, literary revolution, rebellious spirit, counterculture, wanderlust, self-discovery, contemporary literature, unconventional lifestyle.

“The Unbearable Lightness of Being” by Milan Kundera is one of the most beautiful and complex novels I’ve discovered. It’s reflecting on something that I’m struggling with a lot right now: lightness versus heaviness. Commitment versus freedom. As I’m writing on my 6th book, I’m going to share some of the books and authors I’m reading, studying and finding comfort in and that will massively influence my new book.

7. Don’t think you know yourself. You're an ever-evolving incredibly vast thing. You’re not static. Wake up every day excited to discover new sides of yourself. New passions, new hobbies, new talents. Be your own biggest change-supporter. 8. Have less, do more. Simplicity is the key to everlasting peace. Learn to live on as little as possible. 9. Embrace unexpected opportunities. 10. You can never save people, but you can inspire them to believe they can save themselves. 11. Build a connection with the natural world. Greet Father Sky, thank Mother Earth. Meditate. Walk barefoot. Eat foods from the ground. We’re all under the same sky. 12. It’s ok to spend a year on your own if that’s what you need right now. It’s okay to go quiet. It’s okay to pause that dream, pause that project, cancel the contract and just sit and watch the waves come and go in some lonesome town in Portugal. It’s all ok. Trust your story. Be where you are and don’t be sorry. 13. Your only task is to live. 💭 Find links to all my books, music, writings and socials at www.CharlotteEriksson.com 💭

Part two of the 13 truths I have learned about being alive. Part 3 coming next week! 3. Don’t underestimate yourself. If you don’t have the necessary skillset now, you can develop it. If you don’t have the resources now, you can get them. If you haven’t met the right people yet, you’re just getting ready for them. Everything is possible if you just want it bad enough.
 4. Slow down. Stay in bed an extra hour. Sip your coffee while watching the clouds drifts. Read the instructions one more time. Fast is no longer useful. Slow, steady, conscious, and aware—that’s the way to go. 5. Uncertainty can grow into excitement if you learn to trust your own path. 6. Friends are hard to find. Take care of them when you do. Find all my books, music, and story here: www.CharlotteEriksson.com Find me on IG: @justaglasschild Signed copies of my books: www.charlotteeriksson.com/shop

What I’ve learned after 32 years on this planet ✦ People will come into your life to present you with moments or hard truths about yourself, and then they will leave. This is the law of constant movement. Life is not static & you must learn to flow with each season without looking back. Don’t desperately hold on to people who are meant to move on. Send them love & be grateful for the memories. When you forget about the HOW, go back to the WHY. When you know WHY you want to do/become/feel/achieve something, you will easily find your HOW. The books I'm recommending in the episode: The Desire Map - Danielle LaPorte Find Your Why - Simon Sinek Start With Why - Simon Sinek Come find everything I do and create at www.CharlotteEriksson.com ♡

Relationships with cities are very much like relationships with people. Sometimes even stronger, or more formative. You fall into them feeling like a child. Everything is new and exciting, endless opportunities, everything is possible. You wake up in a rented bed, smiling not knowing what the day will bring, and you lie down at night taking a long exhale, perfectly overwhelmed by all new smells and sounds and sights and sounds. You feel like your life has restarted. You imagine yourself in this new relationship, who you could be now, who you could grow to be, the life you could live out. Shiny. Everything is shiny. But you change and sometimes the person, or city, you’re in a relationship with does not, or just changes in a different direction, and one day you find yourself in an argument and you can’t seem to reach each other. Like suddenly you speak two different languages and nothing translates. You flail your arms, raising the white flag, not understanding where you’re being misunderstood, but off you both go and there’s a separation growing in between you. Something has changed.  I left Berlin many times between then and now. Asked for a break, needed to see if maybe there was another match for me out there. Something always felt a little off but I never managed to put my finger on it. I felt in love, but also constantly daydreaming about something else. You know those people who say you just know it’s right when you meet the right one? I guess I still want to believe in that. I guess I still want to feel that, certain, knowing this is it. I had secret affairs with Bali, with Barcelona, with Lisbon, with Prague… but I always came back. For a person, for a job, the wind brought me back, a flight… I always ended up riding a bike through Friedrichshain in July. Flip flops and cheap wine from the corner shop. And I always found my way back to moments of falling asleep smiling, thinking, “maybe I could be happy here”.  Joan Didion describes her time in New York as never really realizing she lived out a life there, like she only planned on staying for a few more months. But suddenly 8 years went by and she had lived out a life there, without meaning to. That’s how I feel about every place I’ve ever lived out a life in, I never actually meant to stay anywhere, just a few months, which sometimes turned into a bit more. I wonder what it would feel like to actually intend to stay somewhere, live out a life, make some plans. It was somewhere on the streets of Budapest that I realized I have reached the beginning of an ending. I have started my leaving. Like that moment in a relationship when you know there is no saving. You stand empty in front of someone who used to make you feel a million feelings per second and suddenly you feel nothing at all. And even though it will take months, maybe even a year, you know the breakup started for you in that second, and one day you’ll say goodbye for the last time and it will feel heavy and free at the same time, because endings are always beginnings and they carry you forward, always to something new and different.  Where to next? Not sure, I know I’ll find it when I get there. Maybe Porto. Maybe Prague. Maybe I’ll spend a few months dancing to rhythms in Ibiza. Maybe something brand new. I always wanted to visit Canada. Maybe a few months in New York? I have no one who will miss me, nothing pulling me back. Maybe I’ll go nowhere at all, for a while. Floating somewhere in between, feeling everything, holding on to nothing.

Hanging out sipping coffee, answering all your questions ☕️ More stuff from little me here: www.charlotteeriksson.com

What inspires you most? Will you go back to Bali? What’s your biggest reward from sharing your creative work online? What makes you feel free and at peace? Advice for making friends when you’re in a new place and have social anxiety? Come have a Sunday morning coffee with me while I'm answering all your questions ♡ Find all my books and music at www.CharlotteEriksson.com

This conversation is for you who, like me, need a challenge in order to feel alive. We thrive on creating personal challenges as a way to feel fueled and fired up, excited and motivated. Nothing drives us more than growth, development, change, moving forward. Stagnation is death to people like us. And this conversation is about what happens when you find yourself without that kind of challenge, and as a consequence… feel unimpressed by life. 💭 www.CharlotteEriksson.com 💭

Have you ever dreamt of reinventing yourself in a new city where no one knows you? Do you know that there is something more out there, destined for you, waiting for you? But maybe you're scared... scared to leave your safety, your family, the place you've called "home" your whole life? This episode is about moving away from home, starting over in a new place, chasing your dream and building your home in moments of belonging, no matter where in the world you might find yourself. If you like my podcast and want me to keep sharing my thoughts and ideas with you, it would mean the world if you took 10sec to leave a 5-star review wherever you're listening. It tells me that you want me to keep doing it, but it also makes me feel less alone ♡ Send me your stories, questions and concerns about moving away from home and I will do a part 2! www.instagram.com/justaglasschild www.charlotteeriksson.com Find all my books here: www.charlotteeriksson.com/books

Everything that has ever happened to you is yours to keep. You own it. No one can ever take that away from you. Your experiences, feelings, cities you walked, people you loved, and fights you fought: they're yours and yours only. And every single thing you’ve done and every single person you’ve met will stay with you, grow with you, and it’s these things that slowly build your character. These things make your life story, and you will only lose the things you actively decide to let go of. You can leave someone without leaving them behind. You can keep the warm, safe feeling of loving someone without wanting to be with them anymore. You can keep your love for someone, even when they say they don’t love you anymore. Think about it: what’s beautiful about human relationships is the feeling we get from them. Think about a time in your life when you were hopelessly in love with someone, romantically or as a friend: you had so much love for this person! It filled you up with energy and heat, made you smile and sing, and the thought of this person being alive made you feel both calm and excited and most of all just grateful. Maybe something happened. Maybe that person decided to leave you, maybe you decided to leave her or him, or maybe it was a mutual decision to simply move on. Either way, it was not the other person that created that feeling of love and warmth inside of you, YOU created that for yourself. You let yourself feel love, for this person, but you can let yourself feel love for anything and anyone, life or yourself even, at all times. No one can take the feeling of being in love away from you. It comes from you. You can carry a gratitude of hope and safety with you, even though you have physically left him or her behind. You can say goodbye to people without losing the beauty they gave you.