Speeding up the journey to end at the same destination

In 1908, Ford’s Model T became a popular mode of transportation. For centuries, automobile rides where viewed as an experience not as just a tool of movement.

Well into the 1970’s, families enjoyed the Sunday drives to absolutely nowhere special. The idea of climbing into a small compartment as a “family” or “community” to enjoy the peaceful scenery around them was enough to satisfy a crave for an experience. It’s the melding of each other’s minds, personalities, dreams, and ambitions into a simple ride in a vehicle. The endless conversations which transpire from a passenger’s inside view of the passing outside world exchanged back and forth for hours, created memories. The experiences crafted ideals, goals, ambitions, and hope.

Somewhere, we have lost the experience of the journey. Today’s cars are created with one purpose in mind: to get us from point A to Point B in the most reliable and fastest method. We don’t care what we miss along the way. OUr purpose is to get to our destination while ignoring the passing present moments engulfed into our digital communications, lead foot, and deathly sense of urgency.

What do we loose?
We loose everything in the journey. We loose every breadth, thought, blue sky, radiant sunlight, and humanity which is squeezed in between our quest from point A to point B. We loose the satisfaction of enjoying the experience shared between our fellow journey man. We travel independently only to race each other to the finish line. Meanwhile, we have lost endless hours of enjoying the scenery a higher one created and the humans we are blessed with their company. We focus on the end. The miles traveled. The efficiency of fuel spent in our journey. The wear and tear of our physical mode of transportation.

Who has the best kept vehicle?
Who got the best mileage and saved the biggest buck?
Who has the best resale value when they are tired and decide to trade up for a better version?

How many of us ask, who enjoyed the experience most? Who took the winding road up the hill to find the most beautiful lookout over an ocean’s mass? Who slowed down a bit, only to drag out a conversation with the journeyman on the decay of an urban house? Who relaxed enough to enjoy the touch of someone’s hand or smell of their hair in the wind? Who matches a song on a radio to a particular place, time, and Sunday drive?

Have we forgotten to enjoy the experience of our journey to only focus on the end?

Yes.

Today we propel each other to the end faster and faster. Disregarding the sweat, tears, anguish, smiles, and memories created in that car ride. We scream down the highway to end only up at the same bar and same lonely faces we left in our first stop. We’ve forgotten to hold onto the dreams, aspirations, and memories which we passed through….which we experienced…only on our way from point A to B. We’ve lost everything only to start all over.