“Clouds” by Bjorn de Leeuw
Road trips are a sign of restlessness sometimes in itself. I remember when I was still living in Germany — how I would take the SchönesWochenende train ticket on a random weekend free from any plans or promises and just carry myself across different paths, across the Continent, with no clear aim or desire. No restrictions. No destinations. Just the trip itself, the traveling.
These trips are almost always a revelation. Much we can learn about ourselves when we abandon our normal schedules and routines. We forget to tighten our chests and our bodies remember how to breathe easily again. The mind is emptied. There is nothing.
And when we return to where we began, we can’t help but wonder if we ever left in the first place. Where did we go? Then we remember to stop asking so many questions.
Life doesn’t have to follow any perfect track. We just need to believe this.
38 Comments
life does not have to follow a perfect track, but life does need to know where the track ends ultimately
‘then we remember to stop asking so many questions’.
this is so what i need to do now. i have been asking too many questions, too many what ifs, playing out too many scenarios in my mind and being so indecisive.
so i’ve decided to take a break, let my soul go on a ‘roadtrip’.
and hopefully when i ‘return’, i will be able to believe.
rokh
Does the track end anywhere aside from the end of life itself? The only guarantees in life are death and taxes, after all. I know there is tax evasion but the other one, eh, kinda hard to outrun the Grim Reaper. He may lose you on the sprint but overtake you on the marathon anytime.
And so. With that out of the way, there remains only the track itself. The journey of life in which to discover ourselves…
Lingzie
“i’ve decided to take a break, let my soul go on a ‘roadtrip’. and hopefully when i ‘return’, i will be able to believe.”
Cool beans. You go, girl!
When on the road, I feel the freest. When I was little I used to chant that Tolkien poem…the road goes ever and ever on…and imagine that the road outside my house was like this river that would carry me away to adventures. There’s always something round the corner.
the road goes on forever and ever…
how true! the tolls, the traffic lights, the jams, the horrible singings in the car. these are parts of the journey.
but sometimes, just like driving on the Autobahn, we tend to speed (just because we can) and we tend to neglect the wonderous windmills and lovely meadows along the way…if only we shift gears sometimes…
Msiagirl
“There’s always something round the corner.”
You’ve put it perfectly, dear. It’s this sense of anticipation, that there is always more to encounter, explore and experience. Life is good, because even as it ends for some of us, we continue, as a people, as a treasury of stories and dreams…
Neil
As The Beatles put it so aptly, “It’s a Long and Winding Road…”
Nic (KHKL)
“if only we shift gears sometimes…”
Yes, what about those of us who drive automatic?
Seriously though, I got what you mean. The whole ‘not stopping to smell the roses’ bit we all do too well. Us city folks especially. Sighs…
you are talking about that most valuable feeling in the world, the one you will do anything for
( when you have losted it ). freedom
“….across different paths, across the Continent, with no clear aim or desire. No restrictions. No destinations..”…sounds like Amazing Race except that is no million dollar!
yes…I am always telling myself there is no perfect track but somehow at the back of my mind, there seem to be already a “pre-destined” track…
It’s really all about the trip, isn’t it?
I remember a 9-hour road trip down to Wellington (I wasn’t the one driving though), I was just staring out of the window throughout the whole trip, taking in the scenery. So much looked the same, but somehow, it was different.
My physical self only travelled from Auckland to Wellington, but it was like my spiritual self travelled the world.
Michelle
team bsg
Is that feeling Freedom? Maybe. Maybe it’s just one of the many emotions that arise from being on the road.
And when we’ve lost it, isn’t there always a way back, if we really wanted it?
tigerfish
We can always pre-destined tracks, or Destiny, even. But do we want to?
su
It really is. The trip, well, it can trip you up. In a good non-substance-abusing sorta way.
Oh honey.. Thank you for being you, and being willing to share that with the world at large.
Life is a journey.
Everyone need their own time, the time dedicated to him- or herself.
People tends to run in the rat race, forgetting why they join in the race.
Time passes and the original passion is lost without realisation.
Take some time to reflect and empty our thoughts.
Looking back and moving forward, without regrets.
Leaving a place involves too much emotion. Still miss home. Haa…
Ok, i think i digressed too much…
ooh, such coincidence! i was gonna write abt the urge to board a train somewhr, not knowing whr the train wud end, but then i got side-tracked by something else, and i lost my engagement with words
The thing I wish I could have done more often nowadays. Heading to a road less travelled, free my mind & my soul from the hassle busy lifestyle, and for a moment I want to let my hair down. I want to smell the fresh air & breath again!
And I do believe that sometimes the track we lead to might not be perfect but still nevertheless can be very beautiful if we want to.
“And when we return to where we began, we can’t help but wonder if we ever left in the first place. Where did we go? Then we remember to stop asking so many questions.”
I always imagine life as Monopoly. We’d always seem to end up at the point where we begin the game, collect $200, roll the dice and start all over. But this time we’ve got more on our hands. More property, obligations, debt (sometimes) but all the more we grow up. And the best part is that, when we play it with good friends we’re not afraid to make a fool out of ourselves…hence we’re not afraid to lose. The get-out-of-jail-for-free card? Some people call it sheer luck. Some call it religion. I don’t know. As you’ve mentioned there’s no perfect, standardized track.
So true.
I’ll take the top hat. You can have the sports car.
1) i love long car trips. call me weird but it’s actually quite relaxing. hha.
2) It’s odd how we grow up thinking that it is a perfect track. School, work, family..people gasp when divorces was announced, career change, or when a seachange happens. Still, that’s the beauty of life. Challenges get thrown at u, decisions hv to be made and we just have to take a step at a time.
something about roadtrips. we always tend to overpack! always thinking ‘just in case i need it’. but do we?
I actually could empty my mind just watching a movie, getting engrossed in it and only snap out of it once the movie is finished. I travel far and wide in my mind when there is physical restriction, and it comes cheap! Only pay for electricity!
Yes. I wish I could stop thinking too much.
Sharanya Manivannan
My dear, what I’ve realised is that none of us are all that different after all, the thousand and one differences we seem to discover and pick at notwithstanding. Our lives are petty and pretty and much the same, and this is the kindest thing I’ve learned from living, and living as much as I can.
There is still so much more to do, and the realization that I’ll never do it all and accepting this, this is the daily bliss.
It’s something I have to remind myself every morning as I wake though, cos us human beans, we’re so easy to forget and we want so much, no?
Jojo
2. No, I don’t think you’ve digressed too much at all. Isn’t life — life the journey — about digressing as much as we need to before we head back to somewhere familiar and comfortable, somewhere we have to leave before we realise that this is what we know as home?
1. Original passion? I’ve almost forgotten mine till I started blogging again last year after some hiatus. We can find it again, dear, or discover new ones, truer ones maybe.
All I know is that being able to share and learn from all of you keeps me going, keeps the livin’ interesting.
Jun
The side-tracking is part of the equation sometimes. Write about what side-tracked you instead?
Eudora
Just breathe. That breath of fresh air. Nothing stops, no reason or rhyme. You’ve said that this might-not-be-perfect track can be very beautiful if we want to. Make it so.
Heck, let’s all make it so. Would be cool if I can hear from everyone how they’ve chosen to view, to find the beauty in their daily lives. Maybe that’s what this blog is about — finding that daily beauty in our lives.
The KookyMonsta
That is the most beautiful description of life I’ve ever read, and to think you’ve equated it to a power-hungry, capitalistic board game! My hat’s off to you, madam! My top hat even.
(You can have the sports car. I can’t afford the fuel.
)
daphne
2. I love that word — seachange. And like the sea, the changes in our life can be disruptive and challenging like a divorce or losing a job, or it can be uplifting and reforming, like the calm after an ocean storm. Baby steps, a friend used to tell me, baby steps.
And it helps to walk slowly with a good friend or loved one’s hand wrapped around yours. Never walk alone; we don’t ever have to.
1. Me too. Especially when it’s not me driving.
keropokman
We always do seem to have more than we need, don’t we? Yet we keep complaining about not having enough. Which is which, I wonder?
Gina
Haha, that’s what I call budget travel!
reminds me of jack kerouac’s on the road. road trip!
It’s funny, but I’ve come to realise the same.
maymay
You know what? I’ve never read ‘On the Road’ despite it being the classic that it is. Now may be a good time, eh?
Sharanya Manivannan
And amen to that, sister. *hugs*
oh u dun reli wanna know abt endless research and reports, do u?
i was so emo over the workload that i had the urge to write, but one of my mozilla tabs was on a page related to my research, and i found a piece of info that i could use in my report while i was blogging, so tht was how i got side-tracked :<
and they say women are multi-taskers. bah!
Ah, still taking the high road, eh?
Good for you. Not to worry though - you’re sure to dip onto the low road every now and then.
Once in a long while I’d take an unknown bus number and take the long ride to the other end just to see what’s there and where I’ve never been.
Jun
Heh. I dunno about women vs. men as multi-taskers, but I can assure you I suck at multi-tasking. I can barely single-task as it is!
argus
Oh ho ho. Trust me, dear, I dip into the low road all the time.
The taking-an-unknown-bus is a perfect remedy for a day when one is just bored with nothing much to do. Just head out with zero expectations and see what turns up. The world will surprise us in wonderful ways if we would only allow it to.
ooo…since i am not in germany, i could only drive aimlessly on a tiny island XD which would aimlessly lead me to a makan place. Wahahaha!
Now…if only the fuel is cheaper…
life is a journey. we just to enjoy the ride. no matter how bumpy it may get, the fact we will get to our destination is what matters most. So enjoy our journey of life. )
Jian aka Cokeworld Citizen
They say all roads lead to Rome; in your case, it leads to Makan, Makan, Makan… and that’s a great road to be on, says I!
equilibrium2008
Yeah, it gets bumpy… but let’s try and enjoy them bumps too… If you can’t beat them, join them!
kenny dear, what a thought provoking entry. I must think of it this way next time I take the next train.
yeah, enjoy the ride… and always remember that God is with us always…
dont need a perfect track but need a life!
kak teh
Oh, but my dear, you were the one who inspired me in the first place. Most of the credit should go to you!
equilibrium2008
Enjoying the ride all the way, bumps and detours and landslides and all…
Big Boys Oven
And that, sir, I do have!
how true for i’ve just come back to reality. life sucks!
Lianne
I’m assuming in this case, you’ve just returned from your sojourn into Deutschland and ‘reality’ in this case is none other than ‘Malaysian soil’? Ah well… we all return eventually… *hugs*
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