Photography and Text by Athena Intanate, Copyright 2020
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One Day at a Time
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Too often when we think of travel, we reminisce of far-flung, exotic places, worthy of bragging about and pulling up photos of at the next family gathering. Having come from a country where people normally vacation in, I’ve gotten used to the exoticisation of holidays, and while find joy in them, don’t hold them to as much significance. The role of Instagram and Facebook, and the pursuit of the perfect ‘insta-worthy’ shot has manufactured this ceaseless image of what a ‘perfect’ vacation looks like, and sometimes it just couldn’t be further from the truth.
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We seem to forget that sometimes holidays are nestled between the quiet moments. They’re nestled in between the seats of your friend’s car, when you’re driving down tree-lined roads to Future’s bass-heavy music; they’re folded into the tentative mumble of half-formed plans; they’re wrapped in the traipses through touristy sites, even though you’re with locals. Lately it seems as though it’s been harder and harder to enjoy the little things – nothing ever seems grandiose or spectacular enough to participate in, let alone share.
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This weekend trip to DC and Maryland was anything but exotic; we drove down to Bethesda, a small suburb just outside of DC, on Friday and I was back on campus by Sunday afternoon. And yet, it was perhaps one of the most contentful trips I’ve taken in a very long time. My heart came back incredibly full, as did my camera roll. The weather’s growing tentatively warmer, and even when the wind requires zipped-up jackets and hoodies to be reluctantly pulled on, there exists an ecstatic happiness within the sunlight. We couldn’t do much within less than 36 hours, so we did the best that we could, spending the sun-swept day in each other’s company, driving between houses, and making new friends over plastic bags of Trader Joe’s peanut-filled pretzel bites.
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Sometimes, we just need to take things one day at a time. The best moments are inlaid in the quietest ones, just waiting for our hands to reach out and grab them by their ubiquitous centres. Urgency can be the killer of joy, and travel wasn’t made for it. It was made for us to fully absorb and comprehend all that is going on around us, and for us to learn from and appreciate what we see.
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This weekend trip to DC brought me back that sense of wholly contentful peace, and I am so glad that I got to share it with some of my best friends before we descended into the current climate of chaos.
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Declan and Andrew, it was a pleasure meeting you.
Solomon, Maya and Charlie, I’m so thankful I have you in my life.
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About the Author: Athena Intanate is a freshman enrolled at Haverford College, Class of 2023. To access additional articles by Athena Intanate, click here: https://tonyward.com/love/