A Journey Revisited
When a person endeavors to undertake a journey it usually
means that that person is moving from one point to another using any number of available
means of transportation. When the
journey is completed, the change in location - the actual displacement that
took place, is often of very little consequence despite leagues that may have
been traveled. Yet the person has grown immeasurably because of the journey
that took place.
The growth that happens is a function of the journey itself rather
than the arrival at the final destination.
There are scores of tales involving such journeys and the trials that people
had to overcome in order to complete their journey. The Odyssey, The Princess Bride, Percy
Jackson and the Olympians, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The NeverEnding
Story, Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, Don Quixote, The Adventures of
Huckleberry Fin, and The Lord of the Rings are just a few of such tales.
In journey-type tales, the hero sets off to accomplish some arduous
task which usually means traveling to some distant point. By the time he arrives at the endpoint, the journey
itself provided the much need strength that was necessary to accomplish the
seemingly impossible task that at an earlier time loomed ahead.
The characters are all different, and their journeys were
all made for varying purposes. But the
fact remains that the journey changed them by more than just their location. As often happens in the course of the journey,
trial, tribulation, and adversity rear their ugly heads. What may have started as a seemingly simple
journey now transforms into so much more.
Instead of merely reaching the endpoint of the journey, the character
now has to overcome these additional challenges. It’s at this point where our hero is tempted
to give in and to quit, but as he digs deep for motivation and strength he
begins to adapt, receives special (sometimes supernatural) help from others
and/or from objects, perseveres, and then at last he conquers.
Sometimes at the end of the journey the hero can look back
and identify a pivotal moment in the journey that made all the difference. Other times it is much harder to identify
such a moment. Perhaps more often than
not, the changes happened subtly, the growth comes in small increments, but in
contrast to the start the growth is significant. The journey has created a new man.
My journey continues…
