Because pg 2 5-6-21
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- Category: Current Issue
Unfortunately, given the longevity of the impact of COVID-19, I, like most others, am permanently changed.
Although I may get back to a similar place in how I felt about social situations, such as going to a concert, before the pandemic, I suspect that it is going to take me a fair amount of time before this happens.
In some ways, I recognize that I may never return to my old self, in particular, when I travel. A few years ago I would consider going to a country which struggled economically as an opportunity for exposure to how others live, perhaps even offering assistance in improving their condition.
Today, I would be more concerned with what health care services I would have access to should I become ill on my travels.
I’m not sure if I would be willing to embrace another from a different culture and country, not because I see them as racially different, but rather because I would be fearful of catching or spreading a transmissible disease.
As much as I am longing to visit friends and family abroad, I am worried that my new fears of venturing outside of my comfortable and safe area code may inhibit my need to continue to grow from the adventures and experiences I have in travelling.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, I have had to cancel or postpone approximately a half dozen trips.
A trip for business was turned into a virtual format allowing me to attend a conference, via zoom, from the comfort of my own office.
Given the success of the event and the length of the pandemic, the decision was made to hold all future conferences in the same format.
Trips to see family abroad, however, could not be reformatted virtually to accomplish the same experience. Therefore, these were just postponed until a later time, which felt like this summer. Once seemingly far off in the distance, as the time draws nearer to these rescheduled trips, I am still uncertain that we will be able to travel and, even more uncertain about how it will be once we get there.
Although we are both fully vaccinated, the idea of venturing to another country which may still be in a state of lockdown or quarantine, seems scary.
I’m also uncertain about what it will feel like to have to wear a mask for nearly 15 hours of travel time, or, more significantly, how I will feel if someone else isn’t wearing their mask. How will these feelings impact my delight in being on a plane which carries me to a place which makes me feel different and more alive?
I already notice that I am anxious to get home after a day out of doing errands, visiting a family member and stopping for a bite to eat. I am not sure how I am going to feel when I arrive at an airport with luggage in hand.
Considering that I have a fair amount of banked travel credits that we need to use and a whole host of pent-up anxiety about having been isolated and confined over the past year and a half, I should just accept that I will have angst in reinstating my travel behaviors and, simply, go ahead and just do it … of course ensuring that I take all of the necessary precautions, wear a mask the whole time, disinfect all surfaces and don’t hug or touch anyone else!
Giddy up! Giddy up!
Kathy Naumann, possessor of NATURALLY curly hair and the understanding that you can’t control everything!
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