The Journey

Life is an open road - a journey. You can never predict or choreograph how it will go, what you will encounter or what it will look like fully. All journeys are filled with peculiarities and specificities that are unique to the time of the journey, the nature of the journey and the traveler – “the journeyer.” Sometimes there are mountains and sometimes there are valleys. Sometimes there are pot holes and sometimes the road is filled with even and unbroken surface. Whatever the nature of the road, it is important that we travel with openness, courage and expectancy. As I get older I am learning more to appreciate the journey with all its twists and turns, certainty and uncertainty, predictability and chaos. We live in a capitalist society that teaches us to plan and strategize, to focus on the goals and outcomes, on the product – the end result. We can so easily get caught up in the destination (what we want to see happen, where we plan to arrive) that we don’t enjoy the journey. The journey is not the destination, and the destination never really reflects the journey. Recently I was on my way to a very important meeting; I had made preparation and was looking forward to the joys of the destination. However, as I drove on Baltimore Pike, Lansdowne, PA there was a long line of traffic. I watched the minutes ticked away and I drove frustratingly and slowly towards my destination. There was clearly something going on further down the street. I could not fathom what that was. My attempt at a detour brought me no net gain. There were still long lines of traffic at every turn. During all this, I sat in my car and chatted with my wife, something that I am sure she enjoyed. After over one hour sitting in traffic, I realized that I was going to miss most of my meeting. I decided to abandon the idea of traveling to my planned destination and instead, created a plan B – I took my wife to a restaurant for breakfast. I allowed my frustration to dissipate by abandoning the focus on my destination and instead I focused on enjoying the journey, focusing on the NOW, living in the moment. I believe that God had carefully orchestrated this morning for me to spend some quality time with my wife rather than my daily focus on tasks and schedules. Wow! I sure learnt a valuable lesson that day. It is important that we remember that, in every adversity there are always seeds of opportunity. Opportunity is defined as “a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something.” Not only should we enjoy the journey of life, but we should not despise its detours, twists and turns. The detours, twists and turns create opportunities – opportunities to pause, to rest, to observe, to listen, to learn, to gain perspective, to grow, to serve someone. There is always a lesson if we are prepared to listen. The journey is often not what we think it is. The journey is about our ability and willingness to embrace the realities of the here-and-now, to be and live in the moment, to acknowledge the realities of the now and to be open to all that is and could be. The journey is about living fully, not with regret or anxiety, but openness to all that the journey entails. Enjoy the journey, don’t focus on the destination.  

“The only journey is the one within.” (Rainer Maria Rilke)
By Dr.Randolph Walters