Tucked away in our subconscious minds is an idyllic vision. We see ourselves on a long, long trip that almost spans the continent. We’re travelling by passenger train, and out the windows we drink in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle grazing on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, of row upon row of corn and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hillsides, of city skylines and village halls, of biting winter and blazing summer and cavorting spring and docile fall.
But uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour we will pull into the station. There will be bands playing and flags waving. And once we get there so many wonderful dreams will come true. So many wishes will be fulfilled and so many pieces of our lives finally will be neatly fitted together like a completed jigsaw puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles, damming the minutes for loitering, waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.
However, sooner or later we must realise there is no one station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It constantly outdistances us.
When we get to the station, “that will be it!” we cry. Translated it means, “When I’m 18, that will be it!”, “When I buy a new 450 SL Mercedes Benz, that will be it!”, “When I put my last kid through college, that will be it!”, “When I pay off the mortgage, that will be it!”, “When I get my promotion, that will be it!”, “When I reach my final age of retirement, that will be it! I shall live happily ever after!”
Unfortunately, once we get “it”, then “it” disappears. The station somehow hides itself at the end of an endless track.
“Relish the moment” is a good motto. It isn’t the burdens of today that drive men mad. Rather, it is the regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are the Twin Thieves that rob us of today.
So, stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice-cream, go barefoot more often, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. The station will come soon enough.
The station is one that tells us to enjoy the journey of life! We all want to reach our goals, but let’s enjoy the daily journey to get there.
Rend Sports 