 |
| Houston, TX traffic.. photo credit to Clau.. |
Personally, I tend to avoid the topic of weather because I once heard that when people have nothing to talk about they will default to talking about weather.. But, surely enough there are always those momentary lapses of interactions when in order to fill the silence, even I will interject with some comment about the weather!
However, out of these two recurring themes (weather vs. traffic), by far my favorite is traffic! Perhaps it's because there's so much human nature intrinsically involved that it results fascinating to me.
I recently resettled into Houston after a season of living in Paris, France. One of the perks of the European lifestyle is the the accessibility to public transportation which eliminates the need to drive everywhere. While this may be a perk in Europe, it appears to be a luxury in Houston! In this city, when we speak of traffic we automatically complain about the lack of public transportation options...
But as I was looking for a place to call home in Houston, I was heavily considering what type of commute I wanted to have. The choices were driving long vs. shorter distance, major highway vs. small local streets, large freeways vs. smaller toll roads.
Once I moved into my new home and began my commute, I tried different routes to go back and forth between my apartment and work each day. It took me a week and a half to fully accept that the best thing to do was pay for an EZ Pass. I realized that adding the sum of daily tolls to my monthly budget is a smart investment. After all, a friend wisely reminded me that I am better off reducing my commuting time because time is money!
Anyways, every day I wake up, get ready for work, and lo' and behold I must drive on the bustling roads of the fourth largest city in the U.S.!
As traffic has grown to occupy a special place in my overall life, I recently remembered how people like to talk about how much better it is to have a commute that allows you to drive against traffic to and from work... I mean, lets just face it! driving during rush hour is one of the most mundane things on this planet.
Recently, as I anxiously rushed to get to work on time, I realized exactly what traveling against traffic meant! While my side of the road was congested and cars were standing still, the road on the other side was so desolate! and obviously, I immediately wished I was driving on THAT side!
My epiphany at that moment was that driving against traffic means nothing more than to travel on the least travelled road! In other words, while everyone is rushing to travel on the biggest and most congested roads, you chose to cruise on the lonely (and sometimes smaller) streets.
Yet as I meditated on this, I quickly realized that the key to a better commute is not just the road itself. The key to an enjoyable journey is also where you set your destination.
You see, my way to work will continue to be crowded and congested simply because my place of employment is located in the Uptown area which is the second largest business district throughout Houston. Because of this, it is nearly impossible to avoid traffic when traveling in and out of this area. This is my destination each and every weekday morning. I can alter my route, but traffic will never be extinct!
But, what if the destination was set opposite to the most congested and populated area in a city? Then you can rest assured that anytime you travel to this destination, you will NOT encounter a herd of drivers.
As I sat in traffic that morning and dreamed about the sweetness of a better commute, I could not help but think that there may be many different paths to reach any ambition; yet, we must decide what we want our destination to be in order to chose a path wisely.
After my epiphany that morning while seating in traffic, I was reminded of Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV), where we read the following:
So, regardless where you are in life, I encourage you to decide where you want to go (professionally, spiritually, emotionally, etc). And I assure you that the path will become clear to you.
But as I was looking for a place to call home in Houston, I was heavily considering what type of commute I wanted to have. The choices were driving long vs. shorter distance, major highway vs. small local streets, large freeways vs. smaller toll roads.
Once I moved into my new home and began my commute, I tried different routes to go back and forth between my apartment and work each day. It took me a week and a half to fully accept that the best thing to do was pay for an EZ Pass. I realized that adding the sum of daily tolls to my monthly budget is a smart investment. After all, a friend wisely reminded me that I am better off reducing my commuting time because time is money!
As traffic has grown to occupy a special place in my overall life, I recently remembered how people like to talk about how much better it is to have a commute that allows you to drive against traffic to and from work... I mean, lets just face it! driving during rush hour is one of the most mundane things on this planet.
Recently, as I anxiously rushed to get to work on time, I realized exactly what traveling against traffic meant! While my side of the road was congested and cars were standing still, the road on the other side was so desolate! and obviously, I immediately wished I was driving on THAT side!
My epiphany at that moment was that driving against traffic means nothing more than to travel on the least travelled road! In other words, while everyone is rushing to travel on the biggest and most congested roads, you chose to cruise on the lonely (and sometimes smaller) streets.
Yet as I meditated on this, I quickly realized that the key to a better commute is not just the road itself. The key to an enjoyable journey is also where you set your destination.
You see, my way to work will continue to be crowded and congested simply because my place of employment is located in the Uptown area which is the second largest business district throughout Houston. Because of this, it is nearly impossible to avoid traffic when traveling in and out of this area. This is my destination each and every weekday morning. I can alter my route, but traffic will never be extinct!
But, what if the destination was set opposite to the most congested and populated area in a city? Then you can rest assured that anytime you travel to this destination, you will NOT encounter a herd of drivers.
As I sat in traffic that morning and dreamed about the sweetness of a better commute, I could not help but think that there may be many different paths to reach any ambition; yet, we must decide what we want our destination to be in order to chose a path wisely.
After my epiphany that morning while seating in traffic, I was reminded of Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV), where we read the following:
As I reviewed the passage, my conclusion was the following: we must chose the destination, for it is the destination which dictates the path!"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."
So, regardless where you are in life, I encourage you to decide where you want to go (professionally, spiritually, emotionally, etc). And I assure you that the path will become clear to you.
Perfect destination + less travelled road = Best journey of a lifetime!.. and eternity!
No comments:
Post a Comment