A Moment in Time: The Meaningful Path Between Two Points in a Zig-Zag

Dear all,

Peering out my airplane window, I noticed this one ray of sunshine adjacent to a zigzagging highway. It reminded me of a biblical lesson about the Children of Israel when they crossed the desert from Egypt to the Promised Land. Had they gone in a straight path, it would have taken less than a week. But the Bible teaches it took 40 years.

So why did they take this route? The rabbis ask.

Had they gone the easy way, they might have turned back, or they might not have appreciated the milestones, or they might not have gained wisdom that only life journeys can offer.

(In many ways, it’s like the lesson from the film version of The Wizard of Oz…. Dorothy could have clicked her heals right from the start to get back to Kansas, but she would not have learned any valuable lessons).

I’m not suggesting we need to choose the harder path. But I do believe that when we take a moment in time to consider our journey – we realize that it’s often so much more meaningful than the destination.