Pep Talk: "Folks Who Wander"

After a fun but long day of the usual Saturday A Stronger Cord  “work out, hang out and help out” and then teaming with wonderful partner Bungee Bootcamp promoting the wellness movement at the NE Denver Walkfest, this tired knucklehead was relaxing at home. It’s about four o’clock on an absolutely gorgeous and warm Centennial State day; college football’s on television with Texas Tech hosting third-ranked TCU the best. Your aging jock of a scribe is dressed in pajamas. Relaxing.

Somebody bangs on the door. It’s my neighbor and pal. A former preacher. We have some interesting conversations. “What the hell are you doing in your pajamas on a Saturday afternoon?” is the first question from his mouth. This traveling man doesn’t even say hi. Before I can answer he asks another question. “Are you okay?”

LMAO, that’s a loaded question.

Anyway, I end up following him next door to his place. His lovely bride joins the conversation. Mentions nothing about the pajamas. We cover information about their travel plans, current events and the conversation ultimately gets around to them asking about family.

That zoomed the ol’ cranium back to a conversation with my mother from the day before. The feisty octogenarian and her middle of three sons have a routine. I call her every Friday morning while driving to meet a bunch of fellow looney tunes who challenge each other to grow in our faith. On the way to and from that cherished meeting, mother and son talk. This particular conversation was discussing a route I was taking to get to the gathering. It was a new route that required using three Denver-area interstate highways during Friday morning rush hour. Traffic’s a bit lighter on Friday, but it’s an adventure traversing a trio of clogged highways symbolic of Denver’s growing traffic woes. 

It had gone fairly smoothly. I joked with mom, “Maybe I won’t have to find a different path.” But often in life, we do.

I had experienced that truth a few days before, upon the discovery of a new route from Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood to home in a central part of the Mile High City. Each weekday morning, ASC is active in this northeast area of the city. But it’s in the middle of morning rush. Sitting in traffic sucks, but a little wandering had revealed a fairly quick cruise through some beautiful and leafy neighborhoods that led me back home just fine and not grumpy.

It also got me thinking about the importance of having the guts to sometimes take a different path. This example was about traffic, but it’s really true about life. Some times we just have to take that leap of faith and try a new route.

We have to wander. I saw a bumper sticker the other day: “Not everybody who wanders is lost.” Amen to that. Some folks who wander are looking for a different and better path. 

Let’s journey there this week at home, work or wherever we roam!