Some people say we should live completely in each moment and that all we have is ‘right now’. But if we lived absolutely in every single moment and never paid attention to ‘just before’ and ‘in a minute’, there’d be no room for reflection and no space for planning and learning and improving. Two of my favourite things to do are going to concerts and going travelling. As I’m writing this (London, November 2020), I live in a state of lockdown, and there’s no chance of going neither travelling nor concerting. At a time like this, it’s clear, how vital reflection and ruminations become when motion and movement are put on hold. Before I travel somewhere, I research and make approximate plans.
Similarly, before going to a concert, I will usually read up on the band, perhaps check out some YouTube videos or maybe a review – or even a setlist – from a previous concert. Let’s call it prepping. When I travel, I try to be as spontaneous as possible, but will also consider my options. As a result I always seem to end up somewhere between organised and improvised. I strive for these observations of travels and concerts to reflect that duality; improvisation and organisation like adding an extended epilogue to a collection of finished chapters. This is also a way to prolong the experience and to some extent relive the emotions and sensations it evoked. Even when the journey has ended, it doesn’t mean it’s quite over yet. It lives on in memories, in conversations, in photographs or videos and in the written word.