The Russian people have a saying: ‘Посидеть на дорожку’, or ‘to sit down for the trip‘. The phrase originates from the tradition of taking a moment to reflect upon, and literally sit down before, a journey.
Here, at the end of my five years in Moscow, I took a moment to reflect on what this journey has meant to me – my travels, my students and friends, a place representing both lockdown and incredible privilege.
Reflecting also reminds me that life is about who you spend it with ❤
Thank you to those who traveled to see me here or elsewhere abroad. For those who weren’t able to visit – you were with me in spirit and I felt your support throughout these last five years. I hope our paths will cross again soon in the States or elsewhere. Now it’s time to pack my bags and prepare to chase the sun across the Atlantic on the solstice. До свидания, Москва.
“Well, there it is. It’s about what we went for. We found, as we had suspected, that the Russian people are people, and, as with other people, that they are very nice. The ones we met had a hatred of war, they wanted all the same things all people want – good lives, increased comfort, security, and peace.”
– John Steinbeck, A Russian Journal, 1947
Meg in Moscow 