The Journey of Life

Journeys (on trains, planes and automobiles) are so often deemed as a mere nessecity in order to get somewhere, frustratingly time consuming, annoying and almost a 'waste of time'. But, if we treat the journey as part of the overall trip, it can be so much more fun and a good use of time. This was on my mind recently as I took the long train journey up to North Wales to visit a friend.

Dan Kieran says in his book 'The Idle Traveller', As we jet off on holiday, passing from airport lounge to hotel in our desperation to escape our everyday lives and find some better weather, we'd do well to ask ourselves what on earth we're doing. Do we really travel any more, or do we just arrive?

It's like a metaphor for life really, to enjoy the journey. Life is not all about getting to the destination - the great job/family/house etc. - but appreciating the route you take to get to these goals and enjoying the ride! You don't get on a rollercoaster just to get to the end do you? You get on it to enjoy the thrill of the ride! Stop and smell the roses, look around you from time to time and take it all in. As the saying goes, 'Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans' - don't let life pass you by as you are so focussed on where you are going! Stop thinking, 'Oh I'll be happy when I've lost weight, or when I get a boyfriend/girlfriend' - the time is now! Love the journey and learn to trust the journey.

No time is ever really wasted, not if we view it properly, even though it can sometimes feel that way if we are stuck in traffic or delayed on a train. Try and relish the time, it's yours, savour it. Read a book, listen to music, write a journal, or poems, or an article for your blog! (as I do)...or simply sit back and enjoy the time to rest and be mindful. My belief is that we are always, always exactly where we are meant to be.

So, somewhere between what I have survived over the last several years and what I am fast becoming is exactly where I am meant to be - right now. I have learnt to love and trust the journey and find comfort in the quiet corners of my wildest dreams. Some say people don't change, but I wasn't always the way I am now. Sure, there are parts of me that have stayed the same, but I'm so much calmer, more accepting and probably much more gracious than ever before - with hard times comes appreciation for all the small bits of goodness that surround us, things that we may not really have noticed before. Really, my life is completely different; my hard times have brought me to the best version of me and the greatest version of my life. Trust the journey, always.

If you're feeling frightened about what comes next, don't be. Embrace the uncertainty, allow it to lead you to places you haven't been before, where you will grow and develop. Be brave as it challenges you to exercise both your heart and your mind as you create your own paths towards happiness; don't waste time with regret. Spin wildly into your next action. Enjoy the present, each moment as it comes as you'll never get another one quite like it. And if you should ever look up and find yourself lost, simply take a breath and start over. Retrace your steps and go back to the purest place your heart, where your hope lives. You'll find your way again. Your life is a journey, and only you hold the map.