Where the pavement ends

Some people believe life is about a destination- a plan followed precisely that brings us to a place marked on a metaphorical map. Some feel it’s more about the journey- the unexpected, the unplanned, the twists and turns and lessons learned without any need for a finish line.

I recently took three weeks off work for a vacation. It was the longest I had taken in my career. Dozens of people asked where I was going, but I didn’t have a clean answer. The fact was, I didn’t have a destination. Beyond that, I didn’t actually want a destination. I just wanted to go. I wanted to drive and travel and get caught up in adventure. I had no desire to rush out and land on a beach somewhere so I could just sit and relax for a few weeks. I wanted to feel something…everything.

I wanted the wheels beneath me to grow the distance between me and everything I’m used to. I wanted to head off into a horizon not because I knew where it would take me, but because I didn’t know where it would take me. I wanted to smell the mountains, tease the edge of a cliff, soak myself in desert rain and breathe the air while it dried along with me. I wanted to chase storms, sunsets, and wild horses. I wanted, more than anything, to live something I hadn’t before- find something different, love something new, fear something unknown.

I think some of the best journeys we can take are the ones without a destination. When we step off the smooth road in front of us and just go where it feels right in that moment. There is life in that. I once heard a saying, “adventure only happens when plans fall apart.” Some would argue that is no way to live a life. But if I find myself aiming for a destination, I hope I never find what I’m looking for.

Craig Miller

Craig is an award winning author, speaker, and photographer and was featured in the S-Word Documentary. You can learn more about Craig and his work at ThisIsHowItFeels.com.