The conversation

(Photos of the diary entry can be found at the end of the text).

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In the evening, the sky clears up again for the first time in a long time. It doesn’t take long for the Northern Lights to be spewed into the starry firmament from the imaginary volcano on the east coast of the bay. The lights are so powerful that they even let their green, cosmic light shine through the skylight of our Terra. “A kiss of air from the sun straight through the window,” I say, pointing upwards in delight. “That’s a nice name for the Northern Lights, my darling, but we should talk about leaving. I know you really like it here and would like to stay for a few more months, but we should still think about a timetable.” “Yes, I know, but I don’t really feel like going back to pandemic-stricken Germany right now. It’s kind of stupid to put yourself in such danger when it’s absolutely safe here in solitude,” I say, thinking of a friend who has caught COVID-19 and has been in home quarantine for ten days. “You have a sick, elderly mother at home who loves and needs you very much. Especially in a time of crisis. She’s alone at Christmas, we shouldn’t forget that. Apart from that, my father is already 83 years old. I don’t know how much longer I’ll have him,” Tanja adds. “Hm, what can I say? As you know, I’m not a monster. Our own lives are limited. Who knows when we’ll be able to travel again? Maybe never again with freedom as we know it? And even though we have no other commitment right now, no employer who will sack us if we don’t show up, should we go home? You know that we would actually be on a three-year tour of Asia right now if this damn pandemic hadn’t forced us to reschedule. Under normal circumstances, we wouldn’t even be able to go home,” I argue, secretly knowing that Tanja is absolutely right and that it would be sensible to break camp. “If the organizers hadn’t cancelled the trade fair, we would have gone home for a presentation. By canceling, we were given a lot of time. Travel time that we wouldn’t have had otherwise. We would have been on our way back two weeks ago. Today is the seventh of November. Christmas is still a good six weeks away. Many people in the world can never go on vacation and hardly anyone is able to travel for six weeks at a time. We, on the other hand, have already spent a month on the Galapagos Islands this year and when we’re home for Christmas, we’ll soon be spending another five months in Norway. A travel record that is particularly impressive at such a tricky time. We can take our time on the way back and continue to enjoy our road trip,” Tanja’s words break down any resistance in me. “Okay, what else can I say. I’ve always disliked people who are excessively selfish at the expense of others. If we were to stay, I would be that kind of person. What do you say we leave the day after tomorrow?” “I think it’s a good idea and I’m sure we’ll have many more great adventures. Just remember that and stay positive.” “If I didn’t have you,” I reply, now even looking forward to the journey south…