It was a fairly warm November evening in Orlando. We were sitting on the outdoor patio of the Lobby Bar at the Four Seasons Resort, having just unpacked and settled into our room. The air was a pleasant mix of anticipation and serenity. We spent the next few hours catching up, sipping cocktails, sharing our hopes for the next few days and reveling in each other’s company.
It was a rainy afternoon in San Francisco. We walked a bit separately with our umbrellas at Golden Gate Park watching the waves crash against the rocks. The rain kept other tourists away and it was easy to get lost in one’s own thoughts. It was the perfect moment of reflection on lost opportunities and life changes. This was the place I found clarity in choosing to move away from home for a bit.
It was a gorgeous morning in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, and after exploring a couple of trails and seeing the waterfall, we chose to make an adventure out of the day. We embarked on a hiking trail that unexpectedly continued downward. With every step I saw the peak getting higher and had a moment of fleeting doubt we would ever make it back up. Hours later we were at the top of the trail, fully invigorated by the scenic views and endorphin-inducing exertion.
These are the moments of travel I miss most. With the country on lockdown, there’s increasing conversation on what constitutes essential travel. One certain fact left out of these talks is that travel itself is essential. This is not intended to be an argument to open up the country (#stayhome), but rather a love letter to those finer moments in travel, the important role they play in our lives, and the effect of the absence of these moments in the current state of affairs.
I want to be clear. I said travel – not vacation. I chose some very specific examples above that included a trip home, a trip across country and a trip for a wedding. One example was at a luxury resort, two were at public parks. This needs to be understood – the ability to have these experiences is not limited by your location or your wallet. Travel is another word for journey, and journey often refers to personal development. This is my argument - that through travel we develop, and without it out life is limited.
Some travel across the globe, others across the state and still others only across town. We travel for business, for vacation, to see old friends or to meet new acquaintances. As stated above, to travel, for whichever reason, is to develop. We come across new experiences, new places, new people and thus we enrich our lives. We seek change from the ordinary and discover new outlooks and horizons. Through travel, we grow.
Some of my favorite moments of travel are those spent on my own, looking out the window either at clouds in the sky or scenery on the road. The moments spent listening to the ocean or coming across a particularly pretty stream or field of flowers, or staring up at a night sky with stars unseen around city lights. These moments give me time to pause and often lead to some sort of wondrous daydream. I can tie most of my enlightenments to these moments, decisions that may have never come to pass if I stayed home.
My other favorites moments are the precious times spent with my loved ones - friends from grade school, family members I see only on occasion, former co-workers turned friends reuniting for the first time in years. How great it is to see them in their element, or to talk as though no time passed at all. With recent events we have cheered the digital revolution of Zoom Calls and Google Hangouts as a way to do this without travel, but for me, there is no replacement. A Zoom Call will never replace the feeling of warmth when you hug an old friend, or the contagious laughter that fills the room when a group of friends in their 30s reminisce about high school.
I could argue that the loss of travel has created a noticeable detriment in society. As we become hangry when we go too long without eating, so too has society grown more irritable with the loss of travel. And just like a hangry person demands food in almost an animalistic sense, so too has society demanded new experiences and places. We are limited to our immediate locale and are thirsting for that personal development that only travel can satisfy. As the country reopens, we see this clearly. Beaches are busy. Resorts are coming alive again and people are looking for their next destination.
So I urge you, whoever you are and whatever your circumstances - in a post-pandemic world, do not take travel for granted. Seek those new experiences, those interactions, those reunions, those enlightenments - soak up all the development you can. Explore. Learn. Grow. The world outside your personal circle is waiting for you.
