The journey is not the end, it is just the beginning

When you see nothing but the journey ahead, all you think of is the end… Enjoy the adventure, enjoy your holiday.

So as it were, I got back from Singapore, from yet another long trip after having visited my brother for a fancy luncheon with the relatives from across the pond, and guess what; I began to look back on the trip thinking that I had missed out on something. It took me awhile to figure it out but I think I might have finally realized what it is. When I began to pack my bags for that weekend trip to the island nation, all I could think of was how much of a chore it would be, making another visit to Singapore for the sake of pleasantries and boring sit downs with relatives. There was a huge lesson to be had, and I am going to tell you what it is.

This time round I took the aeroline and made my way to Singapore, all the while listening to my newly acquired MP3 Player, ignoring the journey ahead, I simply began my trip going with the motions and awaiting the inevitable — Sunday Hi-Tea with the relatives. Obviously, all I had in mind was to get through it, with the same `ole, same `ole pleasantries evolving into gossip and bickering of other non-present relatives, all I want at this point is to get thorough it all with as little hassle and aggravation as possible. I was in fact only thinking of the end.

Never being in the moment is always a little off-putting. I mean the aeroline is luxury bus route, with its`, “The Convenient Way To Fly,” slogan should have at least taken me that far, but maybe it’s just that the slogan was not doing its job.

With as much saturating the trip as I had mentioned prior, I guess even the simplest bliss is in effect ill-afforded.

I touchdown on Saturday afternoon to attend Church with my brother that evening. Dinner follows, also with the relatives. It wasn’t unpleasant, in fact quite the contradictory. The rest became a blur, as I am already back home in KL, writing about this.

The final insult to injury came in the form of the Sunday afternoon Hi-Tea, as was planned, a lot of my cousins had turned up, and to my surprise as well. We spoke of old times and better days left by the wayside… hardly forgotten, hardly remembered.

At long last I am home, as is said. The whole weekend passed by and any eventful occasion already had was not there or committed to any fond memory of the like. I guess, the moral of this story is to be in the moment and to enjoy every second of any trip, vacation or holiday to be had but there is still one thing left unsaid: It seems family is also important and there should be nothing like time spent together to being people together. Maybe we have forgotten that.