Uncertain Flights

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines Eerie as “so mysterious, strange, or unexpected as to send a chill up the spine.” The example they use is “a coyote's eerie howl.” Dictionary.com’s example is quite similar: “an eerie midnight howl.” This is exactly how April (2020) has felt since day one – abnormally eerie. 

April 1st was not only my kid’s tenth birthday or the day to celebrate foolishness – it was the 17th day of lockdown – where the uncertainty of space and time somehow accentuated the ambivalence. That day we got some phone calls that announced the shut down of operations for the foreseeable future; meaning less work and less income (or worse –no income at all).

We saw the inevitable tourism downswing coming; some companies freezing all written publications as governments across the continent made changes to policy day by day. So the research began – what startups and companies worldwide are doing at this time of crisis included exploring new digital ways to connect its communities, live video streams from living rooms, balconies and kitchens – offering virtual experiences from afar. All resources pointing to the same berth: social media.

But while the Worldodometer keeps playing with numbers and confinement keeps playing with our minds – we vacillate. Should we take this human pause to change the course of the year coming and unplug?

From how we travel, work, relate and handle our day-to-day lives, life is already changing. With countrywide lockdowns and most major airlines ceasing operations, we won’t be moving for quite some time – meaning we won’t be writing about travel until the industry recovers. When there’s a recession going on, travel is not a priority.

It’s good to pause for a while and think about how travel is certainly a mode of breakout and liberation. Different from the urge to communicate with others, which suddenly abates and seems inconsequential. Friends and colleagues will keep scheduling Zoom meetings and WhatsApp messages will keep appearing on our screens. People will not stop posting thoughts, memories, reminders, fake news, press releases, reports, landscapes and good moments. We’ll keep posting too, as long as social media does not become a service of our egos. 

Sometimes all we have to do is turn the world off for a moment– or just read the first sentence of The Waste Land and adapt to the beauty of inaction.

“April is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire, stirring Dull roots with spring rain.”