Watching the news of the Notre Dame Cathedral burning into the Parisian night was at once horrifying and shocking. It was a beautiful monument to the history of the French people and a chronology of developing Western civilization over the past 800 years. But more than that, it was a site that millions of tourists made the pilgrimage to visit in Paris each year. And the fact that the original building could go up in flames so quickly is a potent reminder to me of why a “bucket list” is a flawed system for telling yourself that “someday” you will do the things you want to go out and do.
I am constantly meeting people who tell me that they are saving a visit to Europe for their honeymoon; that they will visit after they find “the one”. Or people who tell me that they would like to visit the place where their parents came from, see the country of their heritage…but they are waiting until they have their own children someday. People who tell me that they would love to travel after their pets pass away and no longer require care or people who are waiting to pay off student loans, find a new job, meet new friends, end a relationship, or any other myriad of things that they feel they need to complete before they pack a suitcase and head out.
It’s all just excuses. In my opinion. We make time for the thing that we really want to do. If visiting a place is important to you, it will happen. Nothing will stand in your way. We just have this one precious life. See the things that inspire you. Go to a place that makes your heart sing. Make a pilgrimage to that place you said you wanted to go. Even if it’s just you. You’ll meet people along the way who think the same way that you do. On the same journey. And perhaps it is that connection that truly unites us all.