I am not particularly superstitious but there is a tradition from my natal Venezuela that I continue to adapt every New Years’s Eve. It does not matter where I am, once the clock hits midnight and I hug family and friends - which inevitable always makes me cry happy tears - I gulp down twelve grapes, each representing a wish for the following year and sip some champagne. Right after comes the tradition I stick to with fierce determination, not because I strongly believe in its magic, but because I see it as a symbolism of telling the universe that I am ready for it. So, regardless of the weather, in the first minutes of the New Year I go out and do a small walk outside the door with a luggage to symbolize all the trips I want to take. I think I have only missed it one year, and coincidentally was my most “staycated” year ever. So just in case…

I was making plans for our New Year’s Eve celebration I started thinking about what I wanted for 2020. I do certainly want to travel, always. However, I found a symbolism on that tradition that made me think deeply on not only what I want but what I need to learn.