Nonka

12/10/2026

Today it’s just me and the woods. No big words. Learning me. Feeling. Existing. Breathing. Listening to my body. Learning to be kind and compassionate to myself, because today I finally understood why I am the way I am. I deserve nothing but love and appreciation from myself. I want to believe that from this day onwards I can finally heal, because I finally see the missing piece. The piece that explains so many things, connects the dots and opens the door to myself. To the self who I really am. 🌿🤍

📷 Sigma 50mm F1.4 Dg Hsm | Art 014




nordic

12/10/2026

New reel is up on Instagram 🌿
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DeZ5sRGuPYl/?psln=enNiZGNoMTc5MXl6

09/10/2026

Autumn … Nature is dying and fading away, and yet it is indescribable beautiful … September was tough. Probably one of the hardest in my life and somehow there is a strange relief in me beyond all the pain and aching wounds in my soul. These days I’m learning to take a deep a breath, and that I don’t have to hold onto everything. I’m releasing what has become too heavy and I let myself rest. I want to believe that letting go doesn’t mean losing everything, but it’s rather about making space for what comes next.
I trust October is going to be kinder, with things slowly moving forward. Eventually all the little pieces of my life are finding their way to the right place. My journey continues. I have plans and dreams again, even though I don’t yet feel the strength in me to make them happen. But I take each day as it comes, and deal with what I can. Every day I make myself do at least one thing that helps me envision the future I believe in. I’ve learnt actions create motion in our lives, and once things start moving everything is possible. Even for me. 🍁

My opening thoughts about autumn were inspired by the beautiful Jonna Jinton
Thank you Jonna for always creating something that speaks to me and warms my soul.

📷 Sigma 50mm 1.4 | ART

05/10/2026

If there’s Heaven, I imagine it like this. First time ever posting a raw image on Instagram, but the more I tried to adjust anything in this picture, the more I realised how much I love it as it is.
The tiny little heather flowers (Callunas) at the weekend were glowing in the setting sun. If the sun wasn’t moving as fast as it was I probably would have ended up with hundreds of photos. This flower is one of my favourites. They are so simple yet very special. Well, at least they are special to me.
My heart actually skipped a beat when I noticed a patch of them growing by the side of the footpath as I haven’t seen them anywhere else. Maybe a little bird dropped some seeds right there and they decided to grow roots and found a cosy home in that particular spot.
I wish I could live in this forest. The light there couldn’t be compared to anything I have seen before. I think it should be called The Glowing Forest, or The Forest of Heavenly Light.
I could spend all day, every day there. I’d love to observe every detail and every creature.
The forest with its tall and ancient trees is becoming my new best friend 🌿
What’s your happy place like?

📷 Sigma 50mm 1.4 ART

03/10/2026

New reel is up on Instagram 🌿
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DeBYODQOmjj/?stkn=c3c5bHB2OTJremZ4

01/10/2026

A few weeks ago I was chatting with a lady. I have known her for approx 4 years. As I was approaching her I had to tell her that she has never looked so beautiful. Her eyes widened and said: ‘I have never been so ugly in my life.’ She got into details and told me why: Her hair, her weight, her diet and the list kept growing. 
I was standing there and I had no idea what she was talking about. All I saw was this young and radiant woman with perfect skin, shiny long hair and the most perfect blue eyes.
Then I told her how terrified I was of aging. How concerned I was about the wrinkles on my face and my hair getting grey. She said to me: ‘Noa, you’re never going to age. You just can’t. Look at yourself!’ I looked into the mirror and I didn’t like what I saw. All I could see my face looking tired and those annoying wrinkles. Then she told me how much she liked my hair. The hair that is neither short nor long. Half grey and half blonde. So there we were, two apparently beautiful women, being kind to one another and yet being so unkind to ourselves. Why do we do this? The current idea about beauty is somewhat distorted. We constantly measure ourselves to others. The beauty adverts are about products, treatments and procedures to make us look young. Looking 30 when you are 50 has become the new normal. How can we compete with that? The other day I was watching a social documentary about a Swedish artist who lives in a remote place in northern Sweden. She says before moving to the forest she lived in a city and she spent so much time worrying about her looks. What to buy, what to wear? Make-up on or off? She said this gave her so much anxiety, and her life changed by moving to nature. She says: The forest never judges and it doesn’t care what kind of clothes or brands she is wearing or how her hair looks like. She can be herself and she doesn’t have to live up to expectations. The forest never judges. I keep her words in my mind and when I am about to say something unkind about myself I just reach back to this as a reminder that my looks does not determine me. What matters is my actions, the words I leave behind and the love I give to this world.

29/09/2026

Creating in the dark - The other day I got inspired by Nathan Allen ‘s thoughts about trees. Reading it was a beautiful and painful experience at the same time as they reflect the current phase of my life.
I’ve never thought about trees this way, but his thinking makes perfect sense to me.
A tree grows in two directions at the same time: up and down. The root system grows away from the light, reaches towards darkness and gravity, and before it could ever grow upward it has to fight itself through resistance, pressure and dirt. Once the tree breaks itself through the surface it has to face less resistance. This beautifully mirrors how life works, because the work you do in the dark when nobody sees you, when life feels so heavy and difficult is what creates the kind of success that people later admire in the light. People want visible success, recognition and results, but only a very few are willing to go through the dark and lonely seasons to create it.
I keep returning to his words as they speak to me loud and clear.
The past weekend was especially dark, heavy and difficult. I was barely able getting through the days, and keeping my head above water. But somehow a little light inside of me still sparkled, just enough to create images that somewhat eased my pain. I was in a forest somewhere in Austria, when I saw this tree trunk. The sun was already setting and I remembered the above thoughts, and then a series of images were born.
The forest was dark and in a magical way bright too. It wasn’t obvious or loud brightness. It was quiet and mysterious. There was peace and quiet. No people. No distraction. No pressure. Nothing. Just this big beautiful forest with illuminating light that in a way was almost like talking to me. It felt like I was guided to sat on that tree trunk. There were many pictures captured but this is the one that expresses best how I felt that day. Longing to grow and reach towards the light but first having to break through so many hard layers of my past that have been holding me back for way too long. I keep holding onto my creative mind as it is a gift and it keeps me going.
Thank you for reading me.
With love, Noa 🤍🌿

23/09/2026

What can you see? - September is Su***de Prevention Awareness Month.
When I was 12, one morning my Mom woke me up and said the words that burnt into my brain: your father died. He killed himself. For a few years I cried, every day. Then I closed the door, and I decided that this part of my life didn’t exist. My child mind was telling me he never loved me, he never cared enough to stay, to take care of me, to protect me from the world. I didn’t think about him and I didn’t talk about him anymore. Until this year. 
On the 1st of March I was standing in the car park. It was early morning. 1000km ahead of me, and out of the blue, like a small child I burst into tears. I was sobbing so hard, I could barely breathe. All I could say that ‘Why do I not have a father?’ ‘Why can he not be here and helping me with this house?’ ‘Why did he not love me enough to stay?’
Thirty years of deeply buried emotions were surfacing and erupting like lava from a volcano. I know I will never have answers. But after all these years of denial, I finally want to talk about him. Not because of him, because of me. To heal. 
What can you see when you look at this picture? 
Sunshine, smile, holiday perhaps. But in reality before this picture was taken my heart was heavy. The past weeks were filled with anxious thoughts and I was overwhelmed most of the time. The picture was taken to show me how the photographer saw me, and not how I felt inside. He wanted me to see the beauty in me and to forget about the darkness for a little while. 
Pictures quite often, especially on social media, do not reflect the reality. We see what we want to see. And we hide behind carefully composed masks.
This year for me is when massive chapters are ending and my eyes are opening.
I want to see and believe that this lady in the picture is really me. But right now it feels like my whole world of falling apart in order to be on the right path finally. 
Normally, I would apologise for the depressive thoughts, but I promised myself, as long as I am on this Earth I will never apologise again for who I am, and how I feel.
Thank you for reading me.
With much love, Noa 🤍

10/09/2026

You can now find me on Substack 🤍

A chapter closing

10/09/2026

The man was sitting by the edge of the road, a small table of necklaces laid out in front of him. I am like a magpie—whatever sparkles captures my attention. I glanced at the jewellery and paused for a moment. I didn’t have the slightest intention of buying anything; I have way too much stuff already and am certainly not lacking in jewellery either.
I touched a necklace with blue beads, smiled gently at the man, and was ready to walk away. But he looked at me with his big brown eyes, lifted the necklace, and reached towards me. I don’t normally fall for these tricks, but there was something in his gaze. Something I couldn’t quite explain.
I almost never carry cash, but this time I did. A quiet feeling inside told me to get that necklace. It was only the price of a coffee, but I could feel it meant so much more to him.
It was a beautiful evening. The sun was setting, and the sea was perfectly calm. My heart felt happy and sad at the same time. As I stood there taking in the beauty of the place, I was also saying my goodbyes. It was the end of a massive chapter—one that had brought plenty of joy, but way more pain.
Every time I look at the necklace, I remember the old man, and I hope he is well. I revisit that evening, tucking those memories into a special place in my heart.

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