“Do not confuse motion for progress.” ~ Alfred A. Montapert
With my cold last week, I spent a lot of time sitting. I didn’t go outside much, I slept a lot, and I spent some hours curled up on my couch just lounging. I can’t tell you the last time I just lounged around. I am always on the move, hopping here, there, and everywhere like the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. Sitting, I had time to think and consider and mull over some ideas.
My obsession with moving started when I was very young. My dad used to read the New York Times every day and I used to steal the magazine section, not to read the articles, but to look at the travel ads in the back. One summer I ordered every travel guide that was advertised that had a 1-800 number. We didn’t travel much when I was little and these travel guides helped me dream of far away places. I kept them neatly stacked in piles under my bed and I spent as much time as I could pouring through them. Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand, Chile. There wasn’t a single place I didn’t want to travel to. And so began my life of wandering.
I kept that going after college managing Broadway shows and national tours that took me all over the U.S. and Canada. I spent my vacations trekking around, 2 trips to Europe with only a backpack and a guidebook, the Alaska wilderness, and the Caribbean. In business school, I went to South Africa and loved every moment, even the moments after my passport was stolen. In the Fall I went to Costa Rica and next week I’ll be taking in the islands of Greece. There is so much I want to see. The fact that I’ve lived in the same city for the past 3 years is a monumental record.
I’ve always been afraid that if I sat still I’d miss something and thereby miss out on something. I thought motion meant progress. And more importantly, I thought that I couldn’t progress if I didn’t move.
But this last week I experienced a profound change of heart. In the book Glimmer, Warren Berger talks about the idea of jumping fences. When we sit and wait and observe rather than jumping on every new trend or opportunity we have the ability to store up our energy, hone our learning, and jump not just one step ahead, but many. Fence jumpers, Berger argues, are the ones who truly transform our world. They know themselves, they know why they’re jumping (and it’s not just for jumping sake), and they have the strength and stamina to make the leap and stick the landing. Now that sounds like progress.
I don’t think I’ll ever give up trekking around this globe. I’ll keep going for as long as my bank account can take me. But now I’ll also spend some more time re-energizing, and maybe even get in a little more lounge time. Jumping fences sounds like a good hobby to take up.
Christa Avampato 