Family Gap Year Post #6: An International Pandemic
I can’t help but hear an Alanis Morisette song in my head, every time I think of our Family Gap Year. Instead of singing, “It’s like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife,” I sing, “It’s like planning a trip and then a pandemic hits.”
What are we going to do? If this whole thing works out according to plan, we would head to Ireland in mid-June. As of now, the world is canceling flights and sheltering in place. I can’t seem to find a clear path back to normal. Maybe when a vaccine is found? Which is estimated to be 12-18 months?
Our Options
- Postpone the trip a year. While this one makes the most sense, it also has the most number of downsides. As of now, AirBnB is only allowing refunds for reservations taking place before April 14. That could mean a lot of lost money for us. Also, Henry will be in 4th grade next year, and it seems like the oldest age for him to truly want to spend a year of 24/7 contact with his parents.
- Start the trip later. Even though the world won’t likely to be able to accommodate international travel in June, perhaps January might be okay? When are we going back to school? This whole thing is very confusing.
- Start the trip domestically. Maybe we could go to another city/state to shelter in place? Maybe a small Florida beach town where we could go to the beach (away from other people) every day?
Of course I feel completely asinine for even bemoaning our trip right now (there are such bigger and more important things going on in the world!). But I have also learned from my therapist that I need to allow myself to feel my feelings, regardless of how my brain compares the size of my feelings to the relative scheme of things.
4 Comments
Sebrina Parker
I feel you so much on this! We had a big trip planned for May and our oldest was super excited about it. A week of the trip revolved around what he wants to do when he grows up (it’s across the country so not something we can easily do any time). Obviously we had to reschedule and did so for September. He was disappointed but consoled that we rescheduled it. Now I don’t know if September will even happen and it breaks my heart because he has been looking forward to this since we started planning it last fall. We even had a countdown calendar on our fridge and everything ☹️
Sara Cotner
Awww…Sebrina! What does he want to be and where were you planning on going? I’m so curious!
Sebrina M Parker
He wants to work at one of the Branch facilities of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Warwick, NY. He first learned about it in this video: https://www.jw.org/finder?srcid=jwlshare&wtlocale=E&lank=pub-pk_12_VIDEO and when he realized it was a real place he decided he wanted to work there when he grew up.
Right now he says he’s going to work in the firefighting department. So we were planning to go tour and then drive up to Hudson, NY where there’s an interactive fire fighters museum. It was all part of a larger New England road trip to visit friends I grew up with and ultimately bury my Grandma’s ashes in her family cemetery in Vermont.
Of course these are the dreams of a 6yo 😂 I personally see him going into something related to computer coding or engineering because he has such a knack for it.
Sara Cotner
Sounds like an amazing trip!