Prague: The Life Not Lived

As my time in Prague draws to a close, I am beginning to feel the bittersweet sadness that I feel at the end of most of my travels. When I leave behind the places that I have only begun to know, I cannot help but imagine the alternate life that I am also walking away from: The life that I would possess were I not - exactly - 'me'. It is certainly not a reflection of any dissatisfaction with my present life that I feel this way. It is, instead, a regret for the inevitable closing of doors that we all engage in as we move through life: Choosing one meal over another; one job over another; one love over another; and - ultimately - one life over all the others that could have been.

I suspect that there is no cure for what ails me, and I would not dream of giving up the many things that I gain as I see the world simply to avoid these mild pangs of regret. I think, in fact, that these uncomfortable sensations ultimately cause me to appreciate more the life I am fortunate enough to lead. The truth is this: When I leave, I take a little bit of each place with me. Inside me, there is a growing cosmos - a galaxy of knowledge and experience that colors and lights me from the inside. These experiences - the moments that create the place that builds within me - are the choices that I make. They are the doors that I open.