The journeys we make from planned holidays to even our daily commute to work, all have a purpose and meaning for our souls. We may see them as a routine and mundane part of our working lives but the everyday commute is filled with experiences. We encounter new faces, and new people, we wonder what the new day will bring, or we may be dreading the day at work.
Yet, that journey we make either by train, bus, or car is leading us somewhere and is another stepping stone into our soul’s ultimate goal.
The journeys taken, no matter how routine, are pilgrimages, and life itself is a pilgrimage of spiritual experiences. If we open ourselves up to the mystery, and the magic of just being in the moment, we develop a new consciousness of wonder. It is this awareness of something amazing that we call the numinous. The journey becomes the pilgrimage to wonder and learning knowledge. It is this knowledge that feeds our souls and keeps our spirits alive.
Our journeys can be long or short with many lessons along the way. All of us have something to learn, that is why we are here. Instructions for life are like borders and lines on a map: places we do not go and things we do not see, sights we miss either by choice or life’s design. Yet, one of the most exciting journeys we make is when we plan for a holiday.
There is nothing more wonderful than learning a new journey, especially such as going on a holiday. When we go on holiday it is such a welcomed break. It is a period of relaxation for one or two weeks. It is a chance to reconnect with loved ones, such as family and friends. If we are lucky enough to go abroad, then we experience so much from new food, new sights, and new sounds. The holiday abroad fills our senses with so much new knowledge and it is this our souls hold on to. Yet this magic and mystery can still be found even if we have a stay-cation.
Yet, how do we arrive at our intended destination?
There are many people who like to plan everything in advance and some who just go with the flow. The ‘getting there’, to places is a journey that takes the longest, and it’s because we are filled with anticipation and wonder. These experiences feed the soul and leave a lasting impression on our hearts and minds.
There is no right or wrong way to experience a pilgrimage, every journey is unique to the individual. So, no matter how you get there, or wherever you are going, open yourself up to new experiences.
Allow each journey you make to become a pilgrimage of wonder and mystery. We do not know the journey our lives will take. We may make plans and have a life sat-nav of college, university, career and family, but sometimes the universe, makes you take a different turn. It is at these times we realise how unique and fragile our lives truly are.
Yet, they are also the times that we learn so much, and without realising we have developed spiritually through our strength and determination, by either getting back on the road, or changing direction completely. Some people find these experiences absolutely terrifying but for others they relish the change and spontaneity of life. Similar to the maps we have for life, all the by-roads and places we do not see, are experiences we do not have if we allow ourselves to just to stay on one route.
So, this summer, go on a journey of discovery, and allow yourself to have new experiences. You can plan the journey as much as you like but just once try a journey without any plan, turn off the sat-nav and just get lost! Remember, the journeys we make throughout our lives, feeds our souls with knowledge.