Irish Thoughts

 My sisters and I are proud of our Irish roots - even though they are a great-grandmother away- and we always love to exchange Irish blessings on St. Patrick's Day. (Our children explain to us that most Americans claim some sort of Irish heritage, and it's not that unusual.) My favorite one is "May the road rise up to meet you, may the wind be ever at your back..."  

A few weekends ago, my husband and I went to Seward, Alaska.  It's about a 9 hour drive from our home and you go through at least three mountain passes along the way. The views were breathtaking around us.  Fortunately, I wasn't driving this time, so I had lots of chances to snap photos and exclaim over the views.  

Right in front of me was the navigational map in our car and I was really struck by how different our journey looked on the 2-dimensional map view than it did in reality out the window. If you looked just at the map, you would think it was going to be a relatively flat drive. Yet, here I was surrounded by mountains, lakes and forests. 

How often do we plan a journey - either real or metaphorical, and think it that things will turn out 

         for sure a certain way?

But....Everything looks different

                                            in reality.

Your plan might look flat, even boring.  

You might have a strong purpose, and a certain destination.  But the reality will take you to places you never imagined....

Perhaps through difficulty. 

Perhaps you find unexpected beauty.  

      Perhaps you find friends. 

Maybe there is sunshine, snow or rain.  

Your destination might even change. 

 I have learned that sometimes the journey is more important than the destination. 

No matter what your road looks like today, 

may you find blessing and friendship along the way, and may you enjoy the journey.

                          Happy St. Patrick's Day!