THE GIFT OF TRAVEL
Busy, busy, busy…the whole world seems busy and unmanageable — a jumble of tasks, texts and traffic and then — when you least expect it — there comes a magical moment and the dust clears, and you feel whole and happy once more.
My moment? My young son, his three-foot frame draped in complete wizard regalia, racing full throttle, midnight blue cape trailing behind — bursting through the entry of a ‘real’ castle in Italy. Complete abandon. Uninhibited glee.
It took my breath away. Not just ‘cuz it was cool, but because it was really magical. This enchanting moment brought me to a full stop. In this moment, I realized how thankful I was for him in my life. That innocence. His belief in true magic. The renewal of mine.
Quite the gift. I am convinced that travel is the best gift you can give to yourself and others. Once you start travelling with your kids, your friends, your family, your anybody — you will never look at the world the same way ever again.
Travel is a doorway into an enchanted realm. It is, like the wardrobe in “The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe”, an invitation and a portal into the unknown. Even places that I have been to before have become new and remarkable through the eyes and the ears of my son who consistently invites me into ‘his’ world each time we set foot outside our home. It is his portal we walk through every time we leave the comfort of our living room.
The way he tore through the Jardins Du Luxembourg like a dog let off the leash; the way he touched the hands of ‘Chip’ and ‘Dale’ at Disneyland and the way he leapt for joy in front of the Taj Mahal. I will forever cherish his exhilaration just taking the tube from the airport in London, toy train in hand, drinking in the world whooshing by. All these experiences and memories are a big gift tied up with enthusiastic bows.
My boy’s a ‘think different’ guy and I have always been his happy companion. His accompaniment contributes a singular ‘soundtrack’ to my life — a magnificent playlist indeed.
But life travels on and I would have given more than a penny for his thoughts today as I drove him home from high school — ear buds in ears, listening silently to a soundtrack all his own.
These days I still adventure with him — a full throttle teen running and navigating social circles with the local adolescents on a small Greek Island we’ve called home every summer since he was one.
But now he is piloting his own life. Still, I’ve enjoyed his Sax playing in a small club in Sligo, held my breath as he dared leap from an immense cliff into the wine-dark Aegean, and watched him match chess wits with his pal in Iceland. I will always remember how my heart leapt as his six-foot frame dashed ahead of us on The Great Wall of China, racing full throttle, midnight blue jacket flying behind him.
His soundtrack has always been, well his. I know now that his life has never been or ever will be something that I can plan. I must check my expectations at the curb. Soon he will leave on adventures all his own.
But we will forever have the gift of our travels. No one can steal it from us, it can’t burn in a fire, no earthquake can take it down.
The best gift has always been and always will be what I have learned from the truly unexpected way he looks at things. And for sure it’s never been what I expected.
I will never forget after spending a ‘magical’ day in Rome I was feeling full of the wonder of having paid pilgrimage to the Pantheon and the Trevi Fountain. I felt satisfied that I had served up a big mommy spoon of ‘culture’ that he would remember forever — the history, the magnificence, the splendor.
But my son’s report to his Dad went like this: “Dad , we had a fun day. We ate ice cream called gelato, saw a cool building with a hole in the roof and we threw some money in a big fountain”.
‘Nuf said.
