This is a Daily Moment—short perspectives on life and times through a dad’s eye.
Today, snowstorm Landon left us nearly 12 inches of snow.
The kids were geared up and ecstatic. They started in the park to play in the snow with friends. But then it was time to make our way to the hill behind the school—the Big Hill.
“It’s the biggest in the town!” said one kid.
“It’s the biggest in the state!” said another.
Expectations were high.
Halfway there, another kid screamed, “Whoa, look at that!” and started running toward a giant pile of snow 6-foot high. The four kids climbed up and played King of the Snow Mountain and threw snowballs. After about 10 minutes, we decided to move on.
Halfway between that big pile and the Big Hill, we stopped to slide on some ice. It was fun, but quickly we moved on.
Halfway between the ice and the Big Hill, we found some snow piled high by the passing snow plows. We stopped to dig out holes to make igloos and snow tunnels. We were there at least 30 minutes before we finally decided to move on.
And yes, halfway between our freshly minted igloos and the Big Hill we set out for, we stopped again. We found some basketball goals with their nets frozen solid. So I lifted each kid up so they could hang from the icy baskets.
And finally, we arrived at the Big Hill—our destination. It was far from the biggest hill in the state, but a competitor for the biggest in town. The kids went sledding, and ate plenty of snow. It was fun.
But the highlights really happened along the way.
For the kids, the destination was important, but they didn’t let the journey go unnoticed.
For the kids, the destination was important, but they didn’t let the journey go unnoticed. If fun caught their eye, they took a detour. The destination could wait.
As adults, we don’t usually function like this. We have a goal in mind, then we shoot straight. The journey is just the space we have to pass through along the way. But even on the repetitive commutes to work or trips to the store, there’s usually a lot more to notice than we typically see.
So much of life is spent moving between where you are now and where you want to be. How often do you let yourself enjoy that space along the way?
→ There’s also huge amounts of time in that space. Look how I found 500 hours in these transitions.
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