I have been challenged lately by the idea that I need to live for the journey, not focused on the destination. Often we spend so much energy striving for the ‘destination’ that we don’t enjoy the journey. In fact we usually curse the journey as it always takes longer than we would like. In addition to that it often takes us places we would prefer not to venture.
For a long time I have been one of those people. I have always been one that does my best to take the fastest and most direct route from point A to point B. Living with a ‘destination’ focus means most of the time you function as though where you are is simply a means to an end, somewhere you need to pass through on your way to somewhere else. The problem with living like that is often you don’t notice the treasures that are part of your life right now. You tend to be to busy focusing on the treasure you believe will be in your life when you get to wherever it is that you are going. Being ‘destination’ focused also means you usually don’t notice the view. More over you usually don’t enjoy the experience either. Often you even believe the process of getting from A to B is simply an inconvenience.
A little while ago I realized I needed to enjoy the journey of life more, as you only get one go at it. The reality of life too is that it usually contains so few ‘destination’ moments. By comparison to the time spent journeying, graduations, weddings, births, promotions, overseas trips, goals achieved and dreams realized are rare moments. Most of life is the time spent getting for one of those moments to the next.
In an attempt to enjoy the journey more I have incorporated a bit of a ritual into my daily life. The aim of this ritual is to consciously focus my attention on the treasures that have existed during the journey of each day. I have a very large vase the sits in the centre of my dining table. It’s like a very big fish bowl. Beside it I have some very small post it notes and a pen. Each night (well not every night, but that is the goal) my husband and I write down two things on a post it note that we are thankful for from that day. It can be anything.
You would be surprised how simply reflecting on each day with the view of being thankful for just two things helps you enjoy the journey more. In today’s world it is easy to spend a lot of time focused on all the things that aren’t going so well and being frustrated by the time it is taking you to get where you want to be. Can I encourage you to start a ‘thank you’ ritual in your life this month as a way of actively trying to enjoy the ‘journey’ as much as the ‘destinations’.
For a long time I have been one of those people. I have always been one that does my best to take the fastest and most direct route from point A to point B. Living with a ‘destination’ focus means most of the time you function as though where you are is simply a means to an end, somewhere you need to pass through on your way to somewhere else. The problem with living like that is often you don’t notice the treasures that are part of your life right now. You tend to be to busy focusing on the treasure you believe will be in your life when you get to wherever it is that you are going. Being ‘destination’ focused also means you usually don’t notice the view. More over you usually don’t enjoy the experience either. Often you even believe the process of getting from A to B is simply an inconvenience.
A little while ago I realized I needed to enjoy the journey of life more, as you only get one go at it. The reality of life too is that it usually contains so few ‘destination’ moments. By comparison to the time spent journeying, graduations, weddings, births, promotions, overseas trips, goals achieved and dreams realized are rare moments. Most of life is the time spent getting for one of those moments to the next.
In an attempt to enjoy the journey more I have incorporated a bit of a ritual into my daily life. The aim of this ritual is to consciously focus my attention on the treasures that have existed during the journey of each day. I have a very large vase the sits in the centre of my dining table. It’s like a very big fish bowl. Beside it I have some very small post it notes and a pen. Each night (well not every night, but that is the goal) my husband and I write down two things on a post it note that we are thankful for from that day. It can be anything.
You would be surprised how simply reflecting on each day with the view of being thankful for just two things helps you enjoy the journey more. In today’s world it is easy to spend a lot of time focused on all the things that aren’t going so well and being frustrated by the time it is taking you to get where you want to be. Can I encourage you to start a ‘thank you’ ritual in your life this month as a way of actively trying to enjoy the ‘journey’ as much as the ‘destinations’.
