Beginning at the End

With the time I have left until I leave for Semester at Sea, the countdown has switched from days to hours.  I am a self-diagnosed anxious wreck, so it’s not the trip itself that is worrisome but the waiting for it to happen that’s irking me.  Also, it doesn’t really help when people keep telling me about the cruise sinking off the coast of Italy just a few days ago.

As the goodbyes and well-wishes keep coming, I get more and more tense about my upcoming voyage, and I keep trying to put myself at ease.  I feel like a lot of this anxiety will be put to rest by thinking about the lexicon and the terminology we use for goodbyes.

I feel like there’s a certain attitude with which we say goodbye.  As much as people say that they can’t wait for me to come back, there is a certain air of permanency  to bidding a farewell.  I think this lack of distinction in the length of a goodbye lies in the fact that there aren’t any good words that are really used enough to differentiate a “see you later” from a “have a good life.”  The first thing that comes to mind is the difference between “Adieu” and “Au revoir” in French.  The former, meaning literally “To God,” means a farewell forever, while the latter means “until we see each other again.”  And yes, of course, there is always that possibility that each goodbye could be your last, but I’d like to think that our goodbyes, and technically all goodbyes, are more in the attitude of an “Au revoir” instead of an “Adieu.”

Anyway, I seem to over-analyzing language lately.  I always tell people that I’ll be circumnavigating the globe because it sounds so darn cool.  I’m like Magellan... well, hopefully without the whole getting killed half-way through part.

The whole essence of circumnavigation is returning to the start.  It’s a circuitous, circular movement of beginning at one fixed point, and going around until you’ve returned to that point.  I keep thinking of the destinations where I will be going, and I can’t help but equate these as the pit stops and detours I’m taking until I get to my true destination: the same place where I started.  Honestly, circumnavigation is logically pointless.  Why go through all the toil of sailing around the world just to end up in the same place?  It’s because the toil is what makes the experience worthwhile.

Think of it this way.  It’s a race course, and the start and finish line are at the same spot.  The object of the race is to get to the finish line.  If one person stays put while the other runs the length of the track, did the person who was dormant win?  If they were already at the finish line, why move?  But how about the person who ran?  As he (or she) approaches the finish line, the other guy (or girl) is already there.  What was the point of running in the first place?  It’s the longing of reaching a destination.  While you’re running, you realize why you’re doing it, and this is when all of that unnecessary running becomes worth it.

So, long story short, the beginning and the end are just the same with some filler in between.  This filler is what makes a journey, for if it didn’t exist, you didn’t actually go anywhere.

I really should spend some time away from a computer.  It’s slightly pathetic.  So, as a final note, scattered about this post are some photos for the project from my starting point, or shall I say my finish line?  Most of them are scenes from my neighborhood or things I stumbled on during my walk around Manhattan today.  One photo that specifically struck me was the one of the manhole cover which says "Made in India" on it.  I'll make sure to try to take a picture with something made in the USA while over there.

Oh, and one last thing: Au revoir!