I decided to make use of an unplanned day off last Friday to do some hiking on a gorgeous day. I have a favorite spot, off the beaten trail, at one of the places I hike. The energetic vibration of this area draws me to it and I go there when I need to find peace, when I need to feel connected to the earth and the sky, when I need to feel the energy of healing and rejuvenation. So I set out this day with that spot as my destination. I like to build the anticipation and excitement of getting there though...you know, the journey...so I had figured out the basic trails I planned to explore on my way there.
Along my hike, I came to an intersection of 4 trails. I pulled out my map just to be sure of the direction I wanted to head in. I looked at the map, looked at the trails, looked at my map to confirm...and somehow still managed to take the 'wrong' trail. I knew as I was hiking it that it did not seem familiar to me, but I was sure I had gone the right way, so I kept on going. And then it ended at an opening in the woods and I stood looking out on a huge open field, scattered with dandelions and surrounded by trees, with a large white rock in the center of it. It was breathtaking. So I stepped out into that field as if I were walking out onto the surface of the ocean and headed directly towards that rock. I sat there looking out upon a sea of green while the wind soared through my sails and sent currents of rippling light in waves across the grass. I felt the energy moving up into my body, filling me and surrounding me. This was exactly where I was meant to be on this day.
I know it's a cliche..."life is a journey, not a destination"...but certainly there's some truth to that. I have to start somewhere, with a trajectory in mind, but it's important to not get so caught up in the end result that I lose sight of what's taking place throughout the journey. Sometimes life is more about what the pursuit of a goal leads me to along the way, than it is about the goal itself. As I begin walking that path, I remain open to allowing life to transform my trajectory as I go. Sometimes that path I'm walking changes because of my own choice, sometimes because of someone else's. I may not end up where I had first planned...I never did make it to the spot I had initially started hiking towards...but I always end up exactly where I am supposed to be.
