This photo was taken on one of my last trips before...this. I was in idyllic Palmetto Bluffs, located outside Hilton Head in late February. The calm before the storm.
What to call this? The common word is Quarantine.
I am liking Hiatus more.
The reasoning behind it is sound, though it took me a bit to come around to it. Being involved in travel and meetings, I saw what the slow roll up to what is currently happening was doing to meetings and events and all I knew was that it was disruptive. Destructive.
I had no idea the magnitude of Coronavirus, nor the severe damage it would do to the hotel, airline and overall travel industries, as well as many others.
I now call March 12 Meeting & Events DDay. That was the day it became very clear there were going to be no meetings, no events, no gatherings, for some time. How long? No one knew. We still don't know.
So here we are, in a world where being connected virtually solves many issues, but presents many others at the same time. Who knew when ordered to be "socially distant," so many would rebuff? We love to be in our own world on our devices, almost to the point of no human interaction in the regular course of a day when you would look around airports, restaurants, coffee shops.
Now, when being virtual is the order of the day, it's suddenly a punishment.
I am so grateful that this pandemic strikes when we are able to be socially connected even though not physically. Being able to video chat, or see Facebook memes to lighten up the mood, has been a true reprieve in what can be a dark time.
But I truly believe that once this is all said and done, humanity will again cherish HUMAN interaction. Value it. Understand its worth. And maybe that's a lesson that we can take away from this.
I started this blog a while back to start tracking where I have been. Travel is my job, but it is also my passion. Clearly, with life my posts have not been kept up with.
So I vow to take this time to update the blog, to use it as an outlet, and to help me grow and prepare for what is next.
For whatever reason this is happening, I do believe a silver lining is that it will force us all to reassess, to take a step back, and to come out on the other side with new appreciations, and even new goals.
Here's to a swift end to the pandemic with minimal lives lost, first and foremost. Here's to reconnecting with family and friends, in an unprecedented way.
And here's to a bright, new future.
It may not look exactly as we had planned.
But it will be shaped by us with a new sense of gratitude, and purpose.
At least, that's what I hope for me.
Be well. And travel on.
