Journey

21/7/2021

'Not all those who wander are lost.' (J.R.R. Tolkien)

I felt ridiculously excited last week to get first class train tickets for the same price as second. It was a brand-new experience for me. Not used to this level of luxury, every time a steward passed by and offered me food or drink I asked, hesitantly, ‘Is it free?’ They looked back at me and smiled, perhaps with a hint of pity in their eyes, and said, ‘Yes sir, it’s included in the price of your ticket.’ Wow. I’ve never eaten so many bags of crisps, ham-salad sandwiches and chocolate brownies. Amazing.

Yet a far more adventurous journey for me was 4 years ago, from the UK to the Philippines. 30 mins drive + 2 hours on train + 2 hours wait in airport + 12 hours flight to Hong Kong + 2 hours transition in airport + 2 hours to Cebu (West Ph) + 30 mins motorbike to port + 2 hours wait + 12 hours ship to Samar (East Ph) + 30 mins drive in car + 30 mins on motorbike + 30 mins up-river on boat + 30 mins trek through jungle – to arrival. The warm welcome of Waray children made it all worthwhile!

That was, however, nothing compared to the journey of a Christian biker friend, ‘Iron Butt Rob’, who met and prayed with me at the start of that journey then set off at exactly the same time as I did on a gruelling non-stop 1800-mile motorbike ride to all 4 extreme corners of the UK. The whole time I was on route, he was riding…and riding…through torrential rain to finish at the same time as I did. His remarkable feat raised sponsorship money to support the Filipina activist who was hosting me.

Yet perhaps a deeper journey still was into that amazing encounter with those 120 children. They had never met a foreigner and, as we walked between their simple wooden huts, they smiled, laughed, held our hands and skipped along in front of us. They joined in everything we did with infectious energy and, astonishingly, appreciated absolutely everything. When we left a few days later, the children picked wildflowers as gifts as we meandered back to the boat. We all cried as we said goodbye.

When have you taken a life-giving or life-changing journey – literally or metaphorically? What impact has it had on you?

20 Comments

Paul

22/7/2021 05:47:16 am

It reminded me of the poem, "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost. Taking the road more often traveled is almost always easier to cross, but...taking the road less traveled can sometimes yield better and more profound results. You took the one less traveled Nick, and that made all the difference.

Nick Wright

22/7/2021 12:13:50 pm

Thank you, Paul. It was certainly a 'road less travelled' for me. I had worked for many years with charities and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs), yet this time spent with real people in a real jungle village felt transformational for me. I will never forget these children teaching me a Waray phrase at the start of each day, before I attempted to teach them English. I have rarely experienced such amazing joy and laughter! :)

Ian Henderson

22/7/2021 04:36:49 pm

I'm not sure I have had any one journey so inspirational Nick.

22/7/2021 04:38:18 pm

Hi Ian. Not so - you have had so many incredible experiences in life! Please do share some here to inspire me and others too. :)

Kathrin Hoffmann

22/7/2021 04:55:51 pm

Travel in the literal sense: Short trips to relax, long trips to discover unfamiliar surroundings, visits to family or friends, trips for business, planned and unplanned trips ... they all lead us out of our everyday lives and give us special encounters and experiences. Let us be aware of every trip and never let it become a matter of course.

Travel in the figurative sense also means that I often plan the next steps in life, but some things come unplanned and I have to change my path. This can be annoying to me, but it can also mean relaxation. My career path was clear to me, it should go to southern Bavaria. But this route was closed and I found myself in eastern Germany. It turned out to be the best time in my job.

22/7/2021 05:23:14 pm

Hi Kathrin and thank you for sharing such great insights from personal experience. Your outlook and approach reminds me of what I wrote about in this short piece after a conversation with 'Iron Butt Rob' (in this blog), before I set off on this journey (in this blog) to the Philippines:

https://www.nick-wright.com/blog/plan-vs-prepare

Perhaps it may resonate with you too?

22/7/2021 05:40:59 pm

In my daily job I have become much more relaxed and spontaneous. "What do I do if ..." I don't have to think often. Often times I plan a topic for an hour and in reality I discard the plan. Spontaneous reaction to student questions and student stories.
But the way to my workplace was not in my hand at first. "What if Plan A doesn't work" I never thought. I was prepared for Plan A. But Plan A didn't work out. So I had to discover Plan B first. Unplanned and quite spontaneous.

22/7/2021 05:49:36 pm

Thank you, Kathrin. It sounds like we have travelled a similar journey in that respect. In the past, I would often over-prepare (see related reflections on perfectionism: https://www.nick-wright.com/blog/perfect6208534 - on which you kindly commented too!), whereas now I tend to focus more on looser preparation and here-and-now presence and prayer.

Andrew Mayo

26/7/2021 08:13:22 am

Nick, I think my most life changing journey was very similar. My first journey to visit a charity I wanted to commit to, in Kenya. The morning spent with the drugged up street kids of the Eldoret "Barracks" - a no go area for ordinary citizens but I went in the company of Andrew whom they totally trusted. This was followed another day by feeding very poor children in a rural slum with their daily meal - and experiencing their love and happiness. And in the children's home, the core of the charity, hearing 10 year olds lead prayer and bible verses in the nightly devotion - that week punctured so many "comfort zone barriers" and was the first of 10 such journeys.

26/7/2021 10:07:58 am

Thank you for sharing that account, Andrew. It sounds like a profoundly moving and inspiring experience too. I'd be fascinated to hear if and how your perspective and experience changed over the course of 10 such visits - and what impact that had on you?

Alex

28/7/2021 01:59:24 pm

Thanks Nick. Stirring recollections.
It led me to recall some meaningful journeys; some wonderfully happy, some sad, some full of uncertainty, and all full of anticipation. Truly ‘Liminal’; neither still here, nor yet there.
Like starting the drive to Italy for summer holidays with the kids, with Nina Simone’s ‘Feeling good’ on full volume. Or flying to New Zealand when my dad was dying, anxious to get there in time. Or walking out over three days to a remote team in Nepal, uncertain what I’d find, a rainbow spanning the valley as I arrived, reminding me of God’s faithfulness. It seems journey’s are anything but empty!

Must leave it there; heading to Heathrow now to fly to see my daughter in Germany who we’ve not seen for a year, due to COVID.

28/7/2021 02:38:47 pm

Thank you, Alex, for sharing glimpses of such profound and deeply-evocative personal experiences. I hope you did manage to arrive at New Zealand on time - and I'd love to hear more about your experiences of journey in Nepal.

Your comment, 'journeys are anything but empty' reminded me of the biblical narrative of the Israelites' journey through the wilderness. We tend to think of 'wilderness' as a place of absence, of emptiness, whereas if we look at the same experience through different eyes, we sometimes see God and miracles at work in the most amazing ways possible.

Neill Hahn

30/7/2021 07:33:25 am

I've had a few life-changing journeys (maybe I am a bit lost... how would I know?), but the most recent is when in Cambodia as a tourist. I found the people to be very poor but also very honest generally. Stopping briefly at a small town, we were "set-upon" by a group of children who had been taught to beg from tourists. One young girl (abt 10yo), was clearly embarrassed by her task, so I spoke to her about it and then explained that I would pay her money rather than have her beg for it... a new concept for her. I explained that I only had a short time there but had no idea what was of interest nor what buildings I was allowed in or not. I asked her to be my guide and I would pay her for doing that. She took her job seriously and showed me around with pride. I got to see sights inside some buildings, and places of worship which the other (unguided tourists) didn't know about and neither would have I. When we left I paid her much more than I would have given for simply begging and when she looked surprised, I explained that she had earned it. She stood and waved me off like an old friend, so I made a real connection and hopefully set her on the path from being a begger to being a more business minded person. At least, on that day, she got to keep the dignity she wanted to have.

30/7/2021 09:34:11 am

Hi Neill and thank you for sharing such a great example of an impactful journey. You reminded me of similar-yet-different experiences I've had in SE Asia too.

(The only caution I would add, which I'm sure you will have taken into account, is to be extremely careful of meeting or travelling alone with a child in that context where child sexual exploitation is so prevalent).

I really like your emphasis on treating this young person with dignity and respect. I'm sure your attitude and approach will have made an impact on her life too.

A couple of short related pieces may be of interest?

https://www.nick-wright.com/blog/prostitute
https://www.nick-wright.com/blog/child

30/7/2021 12:23:58 pm

Nick, yes, I was careful to make sure that we were never alone. Other children followed us everywhere and my wife was nearby looking at other things, so I checked in with her often along the way. Thanks for those two moving articles too.

30/7/2021 01:16:47 pm

Thanks Neill. That's good to hear. You brought back memories for me of a visit to Cambodia some years ago with World Vision. I was co-facilitating an Asia-Pacific regional event there and, one evening, the World Vision team took me out to witness their work with street children at night. It was an incredibly moving experience.

I remember vividly that we we pulled into a rubbish-filled alleyway. The team put lanterns on the ground...and children started to appear from all directions. We all sat on the ground together while the World Vision team gave them food and drink, addressed any first aid needs they had and briefed them on how to protect themselves on the streets.

I was amazed by the liveliness, laughter and playfulness of the children, living in such terrible conditions. When it was time for us to leave, the children said goodbye happily and disappeared off into the mist again. It felt surreal...and yet helped to earth the work we were doing at the conference in concrete-hard reality.

E.G. (Ervin) Sebastian - CPC, CSL

31/7/2021 11:27:49 am

Nick, this is off topic... 🙄

I grew up well-fed and well-clothed, but money was always tight... I got a toy for my birthday and one for Christmas (and at times I'd get a pair of boots or a sweater, and I'd CRY 😭😭😭). So, when my mom's business took off and we started having more money than we can spend, I realized that I could afford first class ticket when traveling by train (I traveled about 30 minutes to go to my high-school, by train).

At the train station, I proudly said: "A first class ticket please."

"WHERE?"

"To first class" [DUUHH 😵😹]

"Where do you want to travel, sir!!???"

I don't remember if I was embarrassed or a laughed, but I do laugh each time I remember that "proud moment" 🤣

31/7/2021 11:30:05 am

Hi Ervin. Your story made me laugh. You have certainly lived a very colourful life! :)

Elly Taylor

8/8/2021 10:39:57 am

I was in Bali working on my book. In Bali, a new baby's future is not just the responsibility of their parents, but of the whole community. Watching villagers prepare for a new baby celebration was like a spiritual experience for me. Too many parents are living in social and emotional isolation, especially now thanks to covid. Thinking about how things could be makes me even more passionate about connecting parents into supports.

8/8/2021 10:45:45 am

Hi Elly. Yes, I've worked in a number of countries in South East Asia and noticed a similar pattern. In the poorer countries, people often have a strong sense of community - of shared ownership and interdependence. In wealthier countries, we tend to live independently in relative social isolation. My sense is that it's partly connected to felt and actual need. If I need my extended family or community to survive, I'm more likely to engage and invest in that community. What do you think?

Journey

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