Travel is also about journeys that you never made

"Will you go to Paris for me," she once asked me, suddenly out of the blue. "I want it to be my gift. I will pay for the expenses that you and Nandan (my husband) will incur. But go and see Paris for me, please. I always wanted to but could never go there. Your father went when he was in the UK on a scholarship. We thought we would go there some day together but then, we had other priorities with our money. And then, I went blind. I cannot see Paris, its lights. What will I do going there?"

Sometimes a car is not just a car…

We managed without a car for about two years here in Ireland and during this time, my husband would often complain that he missed being behind the steering wheel and I often thought I missed the man he becomes when he is behind the steering wheel. As the husband starts driving again, I am looking forward to some conversations. The kind of ones we only have when we are on the road and he's driving and has shed off his shyness and his reticence to talk, and is in a happy, meditative, reflective kind of space. I am also looking forward to the music he introduces me to when we are in a car. This past week, he introduced me to The Salmon Dance by The Chemical Brothers and even after listening to the track twice, I missed out on all the swear words that are a part of the song, and kept bobbing my head to the music until my husband laughed out so loud that I was a little startled.

Days of beauty and joy

Even if many such plans are cancelled with the new restrictions, it will be a small price to pay for the safety and health of everyone. Personally, the fact that I had a few absolutely beautiful days gives me the strength that if the coming months have more of social isolation, I will be okay. There's just so much loss and suffering around us because of Covid-19 that whatever problems the new restrictions might pose seem inconsequential in the larger scheme of things.