Tuesday, May 27, 2008

The Joy of the Road

This last weekend, I drove to my in-laws' cabin for Memorial Day weekend. The night we arrived, I found myself surrounded by a conversation of the different cabins/homes on their street that were for sale. I had just driven past each of these homes no more than a few hours before, so I felt as though I should have had a mental image to go along with the objects of conversation. But I didn't. I was too concerned about getting to my destination to take any heed of my surroundings while driving.

What a metaphor for how many of us tend to live our lives. One financial and retirement planning company currently parades this mindset with their slogan, "Prepare to Live". While I'm all for smart financial planning, I think it's a bit sad that our society teaches us to be so future-focused. Yes, responsibility matters and yes, we must be mindful of the future. But whatever happened to living now? If we are always focused on the future, then we are never focused on the present. Our future plans and goals are possibilities, but our present is real, tangible, now. Life simply cannot be enjoyed without the enjoyment of the present.

I think the problem is that somehow we tend to build for ourselves the illusion that we will actually "arrive" somewhere in this lifetime. Once I get married, I won't be lonely. Once I get a pay raise, things won't be so tight. Once I own a home, I'll feel established. Once I land my dream job, I won't be as drained. Once I retire, I can start living. All this is a chasing after the wind - chasing after things that exist but that cannot be caught in the sense that we wish to catch them. They are incapable of bringing real satisfaction. We are all on a journey and none of us have arrived. Until heaven, none of us ever will arrive. In the meantime, there's only one thing that is even capable of getting us by with sufficient fulfillment.

And while we drive on toward our destination, we forget all about the beauty that surrounds us. We become dissatisfied, because we are focused on grander things that don't exist right now and may not ever. Kelsey and I have many hopes for the future. We would like to one day have many of the things I listed above, such as a family of our own, a home, a successful business, time to travel, and a comfortable budget. But ever since we've gotten married (and for the foreseeable future) it has been quite a task to live within our means, because our means are not very high. It's easy for us to long for the days when things will finally "be better". But the fact is, things already are just fine. We have each other and we are alive and healthy, not to mention innumerable other blessings we can list if we only take the time to realize them. Besides that, things probably never will "be better". As soon as we make more money, we'll likely spend more, and want more. What a powerful asset it is to be able to control one's own attitude. Jesus told us he came into the world that we "may have life and have it abundantly." I have a feeling that that abundance is not experienced unless we allow ourselves to enjoy the abundance we already have in Him.

While I was at the cabin, Kelsey and I went for a bike ride up that same road. We had no destination - we figured out our path as we went and enjoyed the ride for what it was. I saw the homes I had missed before. I also noticed the names of the people who lived in each home and the ferns and flowers that grew beside the road. If we realize there is no such thing as "arriving", the importance of enjoying the here and now becomes glaringly obvious. As Sheryl Crow wisely sings, "It's not having what you want; it's wanting what you've got." Set your goals, hopes, and dreams. And as you drive toward them, never overlook the joy of the road.