It was a beautiful Easter Sunday several years ago when my sister suggested we take a drive to see some land friends of ours had recently purchased. What's better than a drive in the country on a beautiful afternoon? So my husband and I and our two girls piled into her car and headed out.
We were having an enjoyable time travelling on roads we'd spent little time on previously, and then turned on to one that had seen decidedly few vehicles recently. That should have been our first clue. The second was how wet that spring had been. Nonetheless we boldly kept going on what seemed to quickly become little more than a trail through tall grass. What could possibly go wrong?
We came upon a rather mucky patch so my sister inquired of those in the vehicle, "Well, what do you think? Can we make it?"
The scene repeated itself a couple more times with success, until we hit a section that was clearly too muddy to proceed. At least in my opinion.
Yes, we got stuck. Mired in mud. I refrained from the 'I-told-you-so' that I desperately wanted to voice and instead joined the conversation to hatch a plan.
My sister remembered she had several plastic shopping bags in the back of the vehicle so we retrieved those and attempted to tie them around our feet, hopeful they would protect our shoes as we stepped out onto the sloppy ground.
We probably could have made better progress had we not been laughing so hard but we managed to slip, slide and push our way out of the muck and eventually to dryer ground.
While it's a day that brings a smile to our faces all these years later, it's also a good reminder that sometimes the most memorable adventures happen when we're willing to take the road less travelled
There is so much we don't see while we're speeding down the major thoroughfares. When we need to get somewhere it is certainly the most expedient way to go, but oh, how wonderful it is when we can toss timetables aside and simply go where the road takes us—just to see what's there.
The last couple of years have been ones where many haven't been able to go to the places they might have hoped, but perhaps they went to places that surprised. I know I did.
In the absence of vacation days away, we chose places we could drive to and from in a few hours and it resulted in seeing things I had too long ignored.
From pioneer settlements to historic grounds, back roads to botanical beauties, ancient artifacts to informative tours, astounding architecture to artistic adventures, picturesque parks to cobblestone churches, and any number of charming small towns in between and all I can say is, I was impressed. Did I know these things were in my proverbial backyard? Some, yes. Others were glorious surprises. But I wouldn't have seen any of it if we hadn't decided to take some less travelled paths to destinations we’d previously left unexplored not very far from home. We might have approached it as inferior to travels elsewhere, but that would be a mistake. They are trips, towns, sights and sounds that will stay with me and have added to my understanding of this region and this province.
Sometimes we don't know what's there because we haven't taken the time to look. In our desire to get where we are going as quickly as possible, or in thinking we need to go elsewhere to see interesting things, we may very well overlook what is right in front of us.
So plan to go out and explore. Drive different routes. Walk different paths. Take a road you've never considered before and be open to whatever adventure may come along in the process. Think of getting your hands…or your shoes…dirty, as simply part of the fun. It can truly open your eyes to something you've never seen, or something you'll not see again in quite the same way. That's my outlook.
