Nasta Rouda formulated her rules for life

Nasta Rouda. Photo: personal archive

"I'm 31. It's time to formulate my rules for life," writes Nasta Rouda on Facebook on the occasion of her birthday. —

1. Small joys are not trifles. Life, in fact, consists of them. So when I buy myself coffee every day at an atmospheric cafe or treat myself to a French croissant, I don't think about "whether I could have saved up for half an apartment by now if I had denied myself this." I don't think about it and don't judge. It brings me joy — so it's worth it.

2. In my life, I haven't saved up for a single major purchase — I've spent everything on travel. Now my "portfolio" includes 52 countries. I watched the most beautiful sunset in Bridgetown, Barbados. The most incredible landscapes with a cherry on top — the northern lights — in Iceland. I ate the most delicious sushi at the fish market in Taipei City, Taiwan. I visited the most unusual temple in Petra, Jordan. I watched the most magnificent musicals with wide-open eyes in London (and understood why Nikolai Khalezin chose this city for life and creativity), and walked through the most atmospheric streets in Edinburgh. This is where I would stay to live if I could choose. I visited most of the countries in my "portfolio" while still living in Belarus.

3. I have a philosophical attitude towards the fact that I regularly spend my savings on travel. Would I like to have my own housing? Yes, of course. But at least before I die, I won't regret not taking something from this life. I've squeezed out the maximum! In a sense, I live as if every day could be my last. And I try not to have a gram of regret.

4. Despite all the variety in my life, my favorite food is fried potatoes and grandma's pancakes.

In my childhood, every summer I spent several weeks with my grandparents in the Homel region, near Lelchytsy (they called them "Lenchytsy"). And every morning we had pancakes from the oven. Thick, about a centimeter thick, gray-black-beige-yellow (the color of Edinburgh), each served with three pieces of butter and a pinch of salt. One pancake — and you're full. This is the most delicious food I've ever tasted in my life.

These pancakes were made from sourdough, flour, and grated potatoes. First, they were left to ferment for several days, and then more flour, water, fresh grated potatoes, salt, and soda were added — and into the oven on red coals.

Grandma stopped baking them about 6-7 years ago. The years of life and hard work on her own land took their toll. Once I tried to put a pancake in the oven myself — I barely lifted the pan. It's cast iron — that's heavy physical labor. And grandpa, with whom I was born on the same day with a 59-year difference, on the day that went down in history as the day of Chernobyl, passed away this year on February 11. He was 89 years old.

5. Check-ups are important. Recently I went to a therapist, had blood tests, and discovered a catastrophic iron deficiency. Almost anemia. Such a level leads to permanent fatigue, drowsiness, headaches, "restless legs syndrome," and it also directly affects the quality and quantity of hair. The deficiency can be replenished very quickly (which I did) — the quality of life significantly increases, there is more strength, and more energy to do things.

6. So far, my most successful investment is laser vision correction. In the summer of 2020, I had vision of -7.75 and -8.25 + astigmatism. In the autumn, I had the correction, and I realized how much I hadn't seen in life! I strongly regretted not doing it sooner, before I had traveled to dozens of countries.

7. You need to know how to say "no." If I'm very tired and feel it's time to lie down on the couch and watch a series on Netflix, then to various offers I will say, "Sorry, no, I don't have time." Because time for rest and recovery is also a task that can be put on the work calendar. Perhaps that's why I haven't had to deal with burnout yet.

8. Not everyone needs a psychologist. I don't need one. That's also normal. By the way, once at a crossroads in my life, when I was 16 and had to choose what to study, I chose between becoming a journalist or a psychologist. But since biology, chemistry, and physics were very difficult for me, I went into journalism.

9. What do I regret? That I didn't learn English in school, when there were five hours of lessons a week, and the results were almost zero. And that I perceived learning history as endless memorization of dates and entire paragraphs that simply wouldn't stick. Now there's little time to fill in the gaps in knowledge, and there are many holes.

10. There will never be enough time for everything. Never. You have to choose. At 31, I have found harmony in my life rhythm — that coveted "work-life balance." I wish you all the same with all my heart!"

If you want to congratulate Nasta Rouda, you can donate to TOK, which she hosts, or, if you live in Lithuania or Poland, transfer a percentage of your taxes to "Nasha Niva."

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