Llongyfarchiadau 
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Diolch! 
It feels pretty good to have made it!
Heeeā¦da iawn ti! 
It feels like yesterday when we wrote congratulations for finishing Level 1! 
I think Level 3 is trickier - therefore, even more fun.
Iām sure the cat will enjoy it too! 
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Diolch yn fawr iawn! It does seem like yesterday I finished Level 1, except there was all that hard work in between to remind me hahaha. Oh, boy! I am really looking forward to the Deep End, as is my little Moon! I am glad I finished Level 2 on Tuesday so I have the week to get myself rested, refreshed, and ready for more!
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Iāve just had a one hour chat with @sasha-lathrop! I never cease to be amazed at how well learners who live thousands of miles from Wales can speak Welsh. And although Bubba Moon wouldnāt talk to me, I think he understand pretty much every word, tooā¦
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Diolch o galon, @BronwenLewis! It was a joy to siarad Cymraeg with you and I am already looking forward to next time. Hopefully Bubba Moon will get over his nervousness like I did! 
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Llongyfarchiadau mawr iawn i ti, Sasha! 
Diolch yn fawr iawn, @aran. I needed the extra encouragementā¦ Iāve hit something of a wall because of my depression, and your kind words have given me a boost. Thank you.
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I was once told that one of the biggest traps with depression is how bad it makes you feel about yourself - being angry with yourself for not having the energy to do anything. And my therapist, brilliantly, told me to stop being angry - and to respect my bodyās ability to know what it needed - and that when my brain was telling me I needed to lie down on the sofa all afternoon, that was because it was EXACTLY the right thing for me to be doing - to accept the permission it gave me to do that.
Made a huge difference to my lifeā¦ 
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Thank you @aran for your heartfelt reply, I canāt tell you how much it means to me. Your therapist would probably get on well with mine. She is always reminding me to show myself compassion and to listen to what my body is telling me. So, Iāve been hunkered down listening to Stephen Fry read Harry Potter to me to fill the silence of an empty house and to give me a bit of hope to carry on. It is easy to start judging myself, and I am a very harsh judge of myself indeedā¦ but it really does help to have you cheering me on from time to time as you have done since I arrived here late last year. Your advice and kindness are most welcome. Thank you, truly.
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One other thing I heard, from a different source, which was hugely valuable to me - is that whoever you are, you still have the little boy or the little girl inside you that you used to be.
You would NEVER judge or condemn the little boy or the little girl in the way you judge or condemn yourself. So see her or him, and speak kindly and supportively to her/him.
Itās easy to see that the little girl or little boy deserves support and love and encouragement. And then you can extrapolate from that, and realise that YOU do, tooā¦ 
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Thank you so much, your words are like a balm to me @aran . Only yesterday I was telling my therapist (whom I admire greatly) how alone and how done I was feeling with everything, how disconnected I felt, and how hard it was not to hate myself. I hadnāt logged in to the forum in a couple days, and I hadnāt seen your post congratulating me yetā¦ and I had no idea just how much kindness you were going to offer me. My therapist would like you a whole lot because she also reminds me of the little child I was who needed love and affection, and of the importance of giving that love to the child inside myself here and now. It is some of the sagest advice I have ever been given (I am reminded almost weekly), and I am so grateful to have the reminder here as well. I am glad someone has shared that with you, and I thank you for sharing it with me because it seems I can never hear it enough. Diolch o galon. 
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Thatās one of my pitfalls. I lack motivation or focus to do stuff, then get frustrated with myself for not doing much. I can be rather judgmental of myself, which puts me in a worse mood, and it just feeds off of itself.
Saw a video on Facebook about that a while back. I should probably be taking that advice.
One of the things about depression is that you donāt feel like doing anything, or going anywhere. At the same time, sitting dormant makes you feel isolated, and sometimes you also feel (again) that you should be doing something. āTake a walk, youāll feel better.ā āMeh, Iāll do it later.ā (sun sets and all is dark)
You feel lonely, yet you donāt want to reach out. And your brain says, āMeh, people donāt call me much. What if I quit calling people, and see if anyone calls me? Letās see if anyone actually thinks, 'Hey, I havenāt heard from So-and-So, I should try to get in touch with them.ā
Really, depression sets the stage for further depression. Itās an endless circle that can be difficult to break free from. Fighting the accursed thing is difficult, and itās something I need to get better at.
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This is so true. It doesnāt help that weāve been conditioned to think if someone wants to talk to us then theyāll reach out. You also donāt want to seem needy and keep reaching out all the time so you leave it to them. Then it becomes a cycle where youāre not sure if youāre just being stubborn or if the other people really donāt want to talk to you. Depression is viscous.
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I understand your sense of distance from Wales. I live in Australia and Iām so happy when I receive the emails from Brenda, I think it is now.
But the latest email (received today) made me realise I must improve my English! Just occurred to me that in the latest email, thereās a difference between āpostcardā and āpodcastā ā¦ dyna twp ydy fi ā¦
O ffrindiauā¦ I lost my Welsh speaking buddy and best friend on Monday. Bubba Moon passed away suddenly while out on our walk. Iād been speaking Welsh to him, as I always did, and calling him my āBubba Pumpkin,ā and then he collapsed and was gone. Rest in peace, my dear friend. You are sorely missed.
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So sorry to hear that! Rest in peace, Bubba Moon. 
Big hugs to you. 
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