When We Wait...

I dunno about you, but I hate waiting.

We finally land in Tokyo Haneda International after a 13 hour flight from the US. From here, we have a 15+ hour overnight layover in the airport.

Ideally, I would pull some Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations where I explore the city of Tokyo for a few hours before I catch my next flight out. Due to Covid restrictions, I was stuck at the airport.

After eating udon, getting my butthole sprayed by the Japanese bidets, and catching a few zzz's, I was left bored with my own thoughts.

While I'm not someone who's usually impatient, living in a big metropolitan city like NYC has definitely made me more antsy especially when there is nothing to do.  

I think that's why I felt so refreshed and relaxed when I spent 28 days in Puerto Rico. Sometimes I just need to slow down and take in what's around me in the moment.

There's something zen about waiting in Haneda Airport in the middle of the night.

The faint bells and Japanese announcements becomes a peaceful soundtrack in the still of the night.

Here I sit acknowledging my own thoughts, fears, and hopes without judgement. Usually I get anxious when I think about the future. I don't know where I will be or what I will do in the next five years and that scares me.

Yet somehow I'm at peace with it all in Haneda Airport at 2:30 in the morning.

Here I don't have to figure out my entire life plan. All I need to think about is boarding my next flight.

Is it a privilege? Absolutely. And it's a privilege that everyone should and can experience.

The reality is we are all stuck in our own version of an airport. Everyone has a different destination, but nobody knows for sure what that end goal will look like, so rather than worrying about the what-ifs, why don't we just live?

Sometimes all we can do is wait.

Now onto our next stop: Thailand ✌️

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