Wanderlust on Lockdown

I think most of us can agree, 2020 hasn’t at all turned out to be what we planned. Disease, death, and unrest have reigned. People have lost lives, jobs, and homes; and with that, hope and faith in our leaders and our futures. For myself, I feel like I’ve been living in perpetual darkness. While I’ve been among the most fortunate of having been able to keep my life, my job, and my home, the guilt I have for feeling at all sorry for myself is at times overwhelming. I ask myself, “what right do I have to complain?” But the truth is, while we can’t compare the loss of a canceled trip to that of someone who lost a friend or family member to COVID-19, that doesn’t mean we have no right to feel loss. Even though some have had to endure tougher circumstances than others, we’ve all lost something to lockdown and that loss is real. We can feel compassion and keep our perspective while recognizing that the struggle of confinement, even in the best conditions, is nonetheless a struggle.

As the world begins to reopen and the light has started to appear at the end of our very long tunnel, we step forward with great uncertainty. The world we knew has changed and it will be a very long time, if ever, that we feel a sense of normalcy when we leave the house, get on a plane or walk into a museum. In my conversations with friends and family, the question that seems to keep coming up is “when?” When will we be able to travel again? The truth is, it’s just too early to say. But still, while we may not be able to buy our tickets or book our rooms, eventually, we will get back out there. I know this because the world is not one dimensional. It is not just still or in motion. It is not just dark or light. It is in a constant state of change and the inertia of that change tells us that this too, will pass. We will travel again.

So save up that wanderlust. Keep dreaming of the places you will be someday soon. You have been given time to think more deeply about the places you want to go, why you want to go there, and to curate the experience of a lifetime. If this year has taught me anything it’s that no amount of time spent on realizing your dream is time wasted. It’s taught me that roaming freely and finding whimsy is not just an act, it’s a state of mind. It’s in our hearts and part of who we are; and it’s something that no virus or duration of lockdown could ever take away from us.