Voices
knowing full well how to use the
doggie door; waiting in line at The
Bagel Shop (though not the official
name, it’s the only bagel shop in
your world); complaining before the
daily roommate run; falling asleep
on the couch to infomercials.
You find yourself trailing two
girls because you’ve seen people
wearing similar jackets back home,
they walk like New Yorkers, and
maybe, just maybe they actually speak a familiar language that
doesn’t require brainpower to
translate, and your ears are straining and now it’s been two blocks
and it’s bordering on creepy and
your pace has quickened and finally
within earshot you can hear them
speak: “Si! Si es muy divertido!”
Your pulse drops and your legs
don’t just slow but stop altogether;
you stand rigid for fear your knees
will just give up right there in the
street, and you realize it’s time
to go where you swore you never
would venture abroad, back in the
days (two hours ago) when all you
yearned to do was embrace the
beauty of local cultures.
As your pace quickens to the
nearest Starbucks, you find yourself hoping they’re playing Christmas music, because even though
it’s September and you’re Jewish,
JOANNA
ZELMAN
HUFFINGTON
10.13.13
wouldn’t that just be lovely?
You know that tomorrow is another day. You will see dazzling
sights that prove “jaw dropping” is
a real physical phenomenon; you’ll
relate to strangers who remind you
just how small this world is; you’ll
sample foods that tingle taste buds
you didn’t know existed; you’ll
grow wiser from reflecting on the
imperfections of the society in
which you were raised. But for now
For some, these
friendships last a lifetime,
but others find that while
clinging desperately to each
other like two freshmen on
their first night at college,
the relationship is fleeting
and at the end of the day, has
an expiration date printed
on your plane ticket.”
you’ll sip another café latte, jotting your thoughts in the margins
of your copy of The Motorcycle
Diaries, because scribbling notes
about Loneliness on a napkin just seems way too sad.
Joanna Zelman is a front page
editor at The Huffington Post.