Airplanes

Some people don’t like airplanes because of their fear of crashing, or the stress of travel, or the lousy complimentary peanuts and pretzels. I, on the other hand, enjoy flying very much, and it’s not necessarily because I find it a thrill, or because I like airplane food.

Once you’re seated, all of your bags are packed, allowed on the plane, and stowed away safely. There is absolutely nothing you are supposed to be doing. No work, no cleaning, no need to look at that to-do list. It’s free time to do whatever makes you happy, whether it’s sleep, reading, writing, listening to music, or bothering your neighbor. You still don’t really know what it’s like to be at your destination, so all of your hopes for your travels are still possible. The little time it does take to fly across the world on an airplane still gives you some in-between time to adjust being in a new place. If we ever manage to find an instantaneous way to travel, it would be hard on people, I think. BAM you’re in Italy, BAM you’re in Alaska, BAM you’re in South Africa. We need time between our source and destination to adjust.

I’m telling you all of this because I’m really wishing I was on my plane right now. My room would be all packed up and ready to store or take with me, my manuscript editing would be done, and I would have received my passport and UK visa in the mail (which they still haven’t mailed to me, and you can’t contact them about the status of your visa, which is worrying me a little too much). But perhaps I need this time, like I was saying, to transition. If my room was sorted and packed instantly for me, I would feel less like I was letting go of old things to make room for new. The ritual of it is probably good for me, despite the looming hours of hard decisions.

One week from tomorrow I will board the plane to Scotland.