Contemplating life can be a full time job if I let it consume me; and sometime I do.

There are so many people ready to share with me about what I am supposed be doing with my life and how I should be living my life, and what I am missing when I do it wrong, and how I can tell I am doing it right. But the real struggle is figuring out what is the right way and what is the wrong way to appraise all that this earth is supposed to be to each of the life forms as we struggle through another trip around the sun.

A quick trip to Google and a search for missives about life and its journey quickly brings up hundreds of quotes by famous and not-so-famous philosophers who want to share with me their thoughts on the road less traveled, and the road everyone travels, and the road that leads to happiness, or despair, or wisdom. Lots of roads out there for sure. So many paths I can read about. Which one do I take? It’s daunting to ponder.

Here is what I think. When I stop trying so hard to find the wisdom in the sages, it really boils down to me. Not in a selfish or self-centered way, but more in a singular-journey kind of way. This is my adventure to take. I walk a path that no other being on this planet will follow…and so does every person who wakes long enough to breathe the air and occupy the space they fill. I’m not saying I am alone. The journey I take may involve others. There may be guidance by the wise and the foolish and I may chose to follow both at times.  I may have a few people who walk behind me in places I visit or others who walk beside me for short periods. Someone may read the blogs I write and have an “ah-ha” moment that causes their path to change. I can still chose to follow the work of others in whom I have admiration. All of these things may happen, and yet the truth is, I am an individual and I am always going to think thoughts and meander through my day on a solo path that no other will follow as precisely as me.

Realizing this, the important aspect of this revelation is thus; to what purpose will my journey be committed? For it may be true that my course of travel will always be unique, it will very rarely be transpired in a vacuum devoid of others. I am part of a social network; and I don’t mean Facebook. My atoms will bump into other atoms that belong to other travelers. So I have to make certain that as I wander on my way I keep in mind the importance of the impact on other wayfaring strangers my actions will convey. My Journey is singular, but it will rarely be taken alone.

♦Photo Tip♦ The photo above was taken with the camera sitting on the ground in the middle of the road. One of the best ways to make photos unique or interesting is to take them from a vantage point that is much different from the eye-level location that just about everyone shoots pictures from. Of course, safety is paramount, so I had a second set of eyes standing next to me and watching for traffic!