Life is more interesting for the journey than the destination. ~Perhaps detours are the greatest gift life has to offer~

For a long time, I have

preferred the journey over the destination.

For example, even if I decide to go to Tokyo,

I don't take the shortest route.

I might stop by Hiroshima.

Or stop by the Tottori Sand Dunes.

Or visit Izumo Taisha Shrine.

Or soak in a hot spring.

Or ride a ropeway.

Before I know it, it takes me two days to reach Tokyo (lol).

I prefer detours over the shortest route

Children have very sensitive senses.

That is why,

there are days when they say,

"This hot spring feels a bit unsettling."

Then I say,

"Alright, let's head to the next place 😊"

and that's that.

Because it is more important that everyone feels comfortable

than forcing ourselves to stick to the schedule.

That is why our travels

are always full of changes to the plan.

But that is what makes them the most fun.

Life, too, has always been full of changes to the plan.

Come to think of it,

life has always been the same way.

The day my child

said,

I don't want to eat meat.

Instead of being troubled,

I thought,

Huh.

Well then,

let's try making hamburgers out of beans.

Let's try making koji consommé too.

Chinese-style koji sounds interesting as well.

As I played around with ideas like that,

before I knew it, my cooking repertoire had expanded significantly.

A world that begins with 'So, what shall we do?'

Even on the day the sales floor at the roadside station became smaller,

I didn't think, "It's over."

Instead, I thought,

"What should I do now?"

Thinking that way,

I bought a display stand,

and when I rebuilt the sales area,

it became much more eye-catching than before.

Now,

I am grateful for that event.

Challenges were the gateway to play

English was the same.

I got a zero in junior high school.

I wasn't good at studying.

But when I studied abroad in New Zealand,

I didn't focus on grammar,

I just played by imitating the sounds,

and before I knew it, I was being mistaken for a native speaker.

Recently,

I wrote this in a comment to someone.

After I wrote it,

I thought,

"Huh?"

I wasn't overcoming challenges.

I was playing with them.

What my daughter taught me

My daughter often tells me,

"Mom, your life is like a manga."

"Were you an adventurer in a past life?"

One day,

when I said,

"It feels like I'm threading a needle,"

my daughter laughed and said,

"No, that's not it."

"You just break the needle's eye."

She said that (lol).

The journey is life itself

That might be true.

I,

am

Rather than trying hard within the rules,

"Well, what's another way?"

I prefer to think that way.

That's why,

even when a problem arises,

"It's over."

instead of that,

"Huh."

"So what shall I do now?"

is what I become.

I'm sure that I,

am not living just to rush to a destination.

Taking detours,

laughing,

failing,

and laughing again.

I think I am living to enjoy that journey.

Things that stay in your heart more than the destination

When I look back,

what stays in my heart the most is,

It is not the day you achieve your goal.

Laughing at the Tottori Sand Dunes.

Relaxing in a hot spring.

Taking a detour to Izumo Taisha Shrine.

With my child,

Saying, "This scenery is beautiful, isn't it?"

Those are the moments.

It is all about those casual, everyday times.

Both life and travel,

The destination is, of course, important.

But,

What truly remains in your heart,

Might be the scenery you found along the way,

Or the unexpected events that occurred.

That is why today, too, I am,

"Huh," I think,

As I take a detour.

Surely life,

Is not about rushing to a destination,

But about enjoying the journey.

A journey where you enjoy the path.

And,

I believe those very detours

become my own unique treasures.

🌿 Recommended reading

This article is a continuation of the following articles.

📖 The world was my teacher.

This is a profile essay about my origins, having viewed the world as my "teacher."

📖 The story of how I, who was bad at studying, played with the world

This is the story of how I, who once scored zero on English tests, learned by "playing with the world" instead of studying.

📖 Why do people fail to notice the treasures right in front of them?

I write about how I, who kept searching for "what was missing," finally realized what my true treasures were.

Hashtags

#人生は旅
#エッセイ
#本来の自分
#人と比べない
#心と向き合う
#自己対話
#世界と遊ぶ
#ゆるい好奇心
#寄り道
#人生を楽しむ