Oranges, Everywhere
There is something about oranges that feels both ancient and alive. During my travels, they have shown up in the frescoes of Pompeii at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, the open-air markets of Sur Mer, in a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice in Mexico City and an orange eaten roadside in Havana, in the orange-infused water I returned to again and again during one of the harder health seasons of my life in Charleston. Oranges have followed me — through travel and through wellness — and I have come to think of them as more than fruit and also as a thread connecting the earth to the body, the past to the present, and the places we visit to the people we become.
Italy, At Last
I had always wanted to travel to Italy since college Art History classes — focused on the antiquities of Ancient Rome, its art, pottery, and furniture — planted a small light in my heart. I specifically had wished to see and experience Rome, a metropolis defined by seven hills, vibrantly painted temples, and a landscape blending monumental marble government centers with massive entertainment venues like the Colosseum. It all seemed so far away yet attainable in time; and as they say, Italy finds you when it's ready.
Departure
As the airline attendant calls for final boarding, travelers make their way to the gate, each carrying their own reasons for leaving, their own dreams of what awaits. I watch them file past—a young couple holding hands, a businesswoman with her laptop bag, a family juggling backpacks and excitement. We all share this threshold moment, suspended between the life we're temporarily leaving and the one we're about to step into.
Stillness in Motion
A train journey is an open opportunity to see the world from a different window in a new way. Some of my favorite and most memorable travel experiences have been clunking along the Hudson (River) Line or gliding across a Euro rail, catching glimpses of countrysides while moving towards metropolitan destinations in the US and abroad, respectively. For example, I think fondly of boarding at Grand Central Station (New York, New York) among the hustle and bustle of daily commuters or curious, international travelers, then riding “up” the Hudson River on crisp fall days towards Boston or bright summer days on the way to the Saratoga horse races— all with space to dream, time to read and quiet to think about — and through — a lot of matters on the head and heart.
Time
Time is a tricky thing. And if we live long enough, we face more experiences and stories about death and divorce than ever anticipated and expected. The truth is time never agrees to move backwards and it is always moving forward. It ebbs and flows nonlinearly, and if we are keenly aware and present, we can travel it in an intentional way, so that it is stacked with experiences and people and places and things that make our time on earth full and unique.