In the best of times, migrants carry a full pocket of guilt about those they left behind. We dip into it to punish ourselves for all the important times that we weren’t there. The milestones we miss. The loads we leave to others in our absence.
For some, moving countries was an active choice for a different life. For too many it was a desire for a life, full stop. For safety and liberty, freedom from oppression. Others were following easier things: love, career, money, adventure.
Listen to Mamamia Out Loud, where Holly Wainwright, Mia Freedman and Jessie Stephens discuss how to deal with social distancing and distract ourselves from all of the anxiety-inducing headlines at the moment. Post continues below.
Either way, we’re prone to a melancholic kind of nostalgia for a life lived elsewhere. And right now, that feeling is curdling to a tight little ball of anxiety and dread….
