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Have you ever made plans for a trip or vacation? Most of us have at one time or another. We've chosen a destination and picked a route or means to get there. We've decided on our departure and arrival times, and then set out to get to where we're going. My father was a truck driver nearly all of his life, driving primarily "long haul" loads. Those were his preference, I think because when he was on a long haul he had only one responsibility - to get where he was going and back. The result was that even on family trips he was very destination and time focused. Growing up in Binghamton we were not close, geographically, to other members of my parents families. In fact the only family members we went to visit were my fathers parents and his siblings. Grandma and Grandpa lived in Malone, NY by the Canadian border. This was about 250 miles from Binghamton and probably took 5 hours to get there. (Assuming that my father never drove the speed limit) Well, I'll tell you, those trips were an ordeal. The drill was always the same - "Go to the bathroom before we leave because we're not stopping 'til we get there." We did usually stop half way there for something to eat because we always left right after my father finished work but other stops greatly annoyed (irritated) my father. It may come as no great surprise that as I grew up I became much like my father - only worse. On top of wanting to get where I was going, with out any unnecessary stops, I was also almost manic about getting lost. This meant many maps, and planning around the maps, and once on the road pity my navigator if we made a wrong turn and got lost. It seemed like the end of the world - time wasted etc. Hence our trips were probably envisioned as ordeals to my family as well. As my father got closer to the point where he couldn't drive any longer, being a passenger in his car was still an ordeal. Only now it was because he wanted to look at all of the things along the side of the road! I've also changed over the years. I am still phobic about the chance of getting lost, but my darling wife Faith, has convinced me, for the most part, that it's not going to be the end of the world if we do get "lost". She tells me "We just took a wrong turn - all we have to do is turn around and go back." This certainly makes all the sense in the world. You don't start out to get to somewhere and just magically arrive there, and there's a reason for that. How you get there, and everything along the way is just as important, or more important, than your arriving. It's the things along the way that perfect the trip, make it more memorable, and ultimately perfect us. So on my journey I've decided that what I want is to enjoy the trip as much or more than I may enjoy the destination!! I hope you will too.
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