Away from the trodden path

Of the 7 themes, 'travel' was a sore point for me when the WriteTribe prompts were announced in November. It reminded me of how much I had missed in life over the last decade or so. Part of it was definitely due to the bonds that come from being in the medical community - I had spent nearly a decade living inside hospital campuses, sometimes literally inside the hospital for years as a student.

But a major part was my own misgivings and invisible handcuffs - when I would get 6 days off in 6 months during my post graduate studies, invariably the only place I could think of to return to was my family. That pretty much dictated my life - hospital, family, hospital - with a major percentage of that being dictated by the medical fraternity.

I decided to change that around last month. I didn't want to wake up a decade from now and look back, wondering why I allowed myself to stay tethered by professional obligations when all I would ever be was a nameless man behind a surgical mask to so many. There comes a point where 'doctors must give up their lives and be selfless' just isn't good enough a reason to lose out on my own.

When this Festival of Words began, I was unavailable for awhile. I took an unheralded break from work. Early one morning before the sun came up, I drove down to the railway station, got into a train and then took a flight right out of the state. I honestly did not even know what I would be coming across once the plane landed but I'm glad I did what I did. I met some lovely people whom I had never met before, had the most fascinating conversations sitting up till 4 am and did some stuff that even I would not have forseen myself ever doing in my life. 

I lived the life I wanted to lead, the life that my heart yearned for. I took the road away from the trodden path that was drawn for me. And I'm glad for it. 'Travel' was supposed to be the one prompt which should have reminded me of my wasted opportunities. Instead today, when the prompt finally arrives, there is a smile on my face. And a memory of the most spontaneous and satisfying trip I made in my life. For a brief moment in time, I got a glimpse of a life that was not my own... and it was wonderful.

Nisha once blogged about how in addition to saving money for daily expenses and long term goals, a part should be kept aside for traveling to new places every year. Thank you for that. I aim to follow your advice a lot more often in the days to come.  

This is my post for the prompt 'Travel' in WriteTribe's Festival of Words.