Tasom's Blog: A Longer Journey is a Shorter Route

It's common knowledge that the shortest route from point A to point B is a straight line. This isn't necessarily true. In the short term the straight line will get you to point B faster. But I intend to walk the road more than once.

The other alternative from A to B is by taking side roads and detours. By taking detours, you are offered experiences in life through surprises and challenges, if you let it. This is a very illogical way of thinking: how can taking detours through life a shorter route?

For me, life is about taking in experiences and learning from everything and everyone. I believe everyone has something to give and every life event has a moral lesson. Straight line allows you to reach the destination faster but when you have the walk the line again, the straight line may be longer than if you took the detour the first trip. If you took the detour the first time, the next trip you take, you may not have to walk any line at all because you've been challenged all the barriers that it takes you to get from A to B the last time. In other words, you may not have learned the lesson and experiences you require if you take the fastest route.

If you can, the next time you take a detour, bring someone with you. As the movie/book "Into the Wild" says happiness is only when shared. There's no point enjoying life if you can't share it someone else.

I took a long, detoured walk through the mountainside behind my aunt's apartment. It was refreshing to see the place from a pseudo-bird's-eye view, which makes everything that was repetitive, new again.

I arrived in Mapo to see my dad's best friend during the time when everyone was going home after work. You could imagine what that could be. Everyone has places to go, people to see. Me on the other hand, was the only human being that was wondering around looking at the marvels of skyscrapers.