i shall be telling this with a sigh
somewhere ages and ages hence:
two roads diverged in a wood, and i -
i took the one less traveled by,
and that has made all the difference.
● ● ● ●
Monday, October 8, 2018
The Joys & Challenges of Travel @
6:27 AM
I’ve never understood why people hate airports; they have always held a romantic fascination for me. They symbolize the beginning or the end, of an epic or simple, journey. Airports are places to be celebrated: the excitement and exhaustion of travel encapsulated all in one place. You enter a tropical paradise in one city and exit into an explosion of crisp air and fall colors in another. The intrigue of people watching is never stronger than in these places of transit. People change and grow between departures and arrivals. Business or pleasure make no difference; from the moment they step onto that iron bird something changes in them. They are never the same person as when they left.
I have always been told if you want to see the quality of someone’s character, travel or dine with them. The challenges you face in these environments tell you a lot about a person. How do they handle stress, strain and the basic concept of being kind to others when something they put in their mouth for sustenance comes into threat of being not exactly what they ordered? What happens to those who are constantly fighting life for dominance when their power is taken away? Do they regress into childish behavior, or do they embrace the change with open arms? I’ve found it to be a combination of both and have reveled in the challenge of speaking kindly to those closest to me when under the fatigue and joy of travel.
I invite you to choose your words and actions carefully as you enter your next journey. Be joyful and honor the journey, not just the destination.Be kind and curb your speech to all you encounter; especially your travel companions. Be exuberant, and despite the need for sleep, explore as much, and as far as you can. Embrace the detours life has to offer; the adventure is essential to growth. Travel changes people, for better or worse speaks to their character; ensure you aren’t falling into the self centered system our society has become.
“When you travel you’re trying to get somewhere. And, of course, we, being a very compulsive and purposive culture, are busy getting everywhere faster and faster until we eliminate the distance between places…what happens as a result of that is the two ends of your journey became the same place. You eliminate the distance, you eliminate the journey. The fun of the journey is travel, not to obliterate travel.” -Alan Watts, The Playful Universe
the art of uncertainty.
two roads diverged in a wood, and i -
i took the one less traveled by,
and that has made all the difference.