Tucked away in our subconscious is a idyllic vision. We see
ourselves on a train, we drink in the passing scenes of cars on near by
highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle grazing on a distant
hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, of row upon row of corn
and wheat, of flatlands and valleys of mountains and rolling hill, of city
skylines and village halls. But uppermost in our minds is the final destination.
On a certain day at a certain hour we will pull into the station. Bands
will be playing and flags waving. Once we get there so many wonderful dreams
will come true and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a completed
jigsaw puzzle.
When we reach the station, that will be it." We cry. "When I'm 18."
"When I buy a new 450 SL Mercedes Benz." "When I put that last kid through
college." "When I have paid off the mortgage." "When I reach the age of
retirement, I shall live happily ever after."
Sooner or later we must realize there is no Station, no one place to
arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station
is only a dream.
"Relish the moment" is a good motto, especially when coupled with Psalm
118:24: "this is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and
be glad in it." It isn’t the burden of today that drive men mad. It is
the regrets over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are
twin thieves who rob us of today.
So, stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more
mountains, eat more ice cream, go barefoot more often, swim more rivers,
watch more sunsets, laugh more, cry less. Life must be lived as we go along.
The station will come soon enough.
I presented this to my precious departed Mother on her 90th Birthday.
She passed away at the age of 97.