No baggage

We all have baggage, but it's pointless to rummage continually through it, with regrets.

Life is made up of a series of chapters. I've been back in UK 8 months after my 3 years in Italy, and I've written about the ongoing chapter of my life in Lincoln in my blog, The View from Saint Hugh. I now interrupt that story as I start a new chapter. I'll be back in Lincoln for

Which ones will button-up and look good?

 Easter, but until then, I'll be exploring life on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. Hence the idea of luggage and the baggage we carry in our lives.
When we travel, we pack, and when we start a new chapter we similarly choose what we take with us. This means tough decisions between what we take and what we leave behind, whether we're talking literally or metaphorically.
We may need clothes for a different climate, possessions for different activities, guide books and phrase books, as well as the plugs, cables and adaptors that enable us to continue with the things we use back home.  But it's not just about keeping on with the same activities and the same way of life: it's about taking the opportunity to have new experiences.

Glad I found my old face-mask & snorkel

I look forward to a change of language and culture, new friends, and a different way of life. I particularly look forward to swimming again, especially when I read about the tropical fish and the crystal-clear water, and I look forward to the opportunity to take up photography once again - something I sadly neglected in Italy.
And all of this is a metaphor for what's going on for us in our everyday life, ( -but with more leisure and better weather!)

We can't take everything with us.

When we move from one chapter to the next in our lives, we can  never be sure about what the future holds, and never sure what we should carry with us, and what we should leave behind.
You see, for me, going to Mauritius is more than just a holiday visit to a friend, it's an exploration of a new opportunity.
So, to extend the metaphor a little further, it means letting go and diving in.

Over the next six weeks I'll be exploring a part of the world I've never visited. It's a country that was totally uninhabited until the 16th century. It was then visited by the Arabs, the Portuguese and the Dutch, but no humans lived on Mauritius until the middle of the 17th century. For almost a hundred years, the Dutch tried to establish themselves, but their efforts never took off, for a whole variety of reasons. The French were more successful and have left a strong cultural imprint on life in Mauritius. Eventually, the British captured the island from the French in 1810, outlawed the practice of slavery in 1835 and began to entice indentured labour from India and China. The result is a cosmopolitan community which has created a rich blend of cultures and - according to all the guide-books - very little racial tension.

Only one indigenous population suffered. The Dodo was hunted to extinction.

I've paid for a second suitcase in addition to my free allowance and my carry-on case, so all that remains now is to try and stop worrying whether I've packed everything, remember to book a taxi to get me to the station and well - smile, and enjoy this amazing opportunity.