Seeking Wisdom

I hinted yesterday that my route today would be over a series of smaller highways that might make me a little smarter. And thus it went, my quest for Wisdom. Let me explain, in somewhat metaphorical terms, how my day went.

I didn't sleep especially well last night as a series of "thuds" persisted until very late last night. Then again this morning, beginning quite early, it sounded as if the Romanian Gymnastics team was practicing their dismounts. It was not until I walked through the lobby that I realized that, despite being around the corner, my room was directly underneath the stairway to the second floor. The hotel was only two floors so there was no elevator and EVERYONE used those stairs for access to their rooms. Kids jumping, stomping their feet, dragging and/or dropping their suitcases, no one gave thought to the Harry Potters of the world!

The riding began with a choice of routes, all of which emanated from Bozeman, or actually Belgrade, Mt. From there the options began. For some reason Google Maps will offer alternative routes but you can only select one alternative, regardless of whether or not another alternative coincides. (Now I just confused myself. Let's say route #1 goes from point A to B, to C, to D, then ends at point E, whereas an alternate might go only from A to B, where it rejoins the original route. If another alternative would go from C to D you can only select it if you deselect the alternate from A to B. Oh, never mind!)

My desired path was non-Interstate from Belgrade along a combination of highways 84, 85, 287, 41, 278 and 43. I could have stayed on I-90 and exited at I-15 to 43, but when you are seeking Wisdom the route sometimes chooses you, based on the lessons to be learned along the way.

If I had not taken the route laid out for me by The Navigator, I would not have found the world's largest Boom-Box

You may think, "I can get along just fine without seeing the world's largest Boom-Box" but in the process of following the desired path you find what is intended for you to find.

You see,once you find Wisdom you will find a lot of the answers. Not like in this cartoon

Or

But you might just find that the one who has many of the answers looks somewhat like yourself:

The answer lies in your hands, or perhaps in your hand, the right one in this case

By placing the thumb and forefinger around the throttle of life you control your destiny. You can now go to places that can not be reached by coasting downhill. You find what you are good at, what you like to do, then you twist the throttle and accelerate through life. And how do you find what you're good at, what you like to do? By setting a goal and accelerating toward it. You may find that the goal is not correct for you, but if you are moving forward you control your course corrections. You can not maintain your balance by sitting still. Many people think decision making is qualitative, it is not; decision making is quantitative. Each decision is a course correction. My biggest problem in business was always wanting to make the correct decision. You can't, no one can. But by heading in the correct direction, small adjustments become easier to make.

This doesn't mean you need to be racing forward at all times. Life is balance; family, career, recreation. Find what you like to do

 Fly fishing?

Balance that with your career and family

Sometimes it will seem like it's just you and a couple of close friends

But learn from the past. Not everything new is better. Don't do things or use things because it makes life easier, do things because they are right.

Study history

Respect those who have made your life better

Make someone else's life better and you will improve your own. Smiles are cheap, pass them out every day. If your room is under the stairway be thankful you weren't out in the rain. 

When it seems like the whole herd is going the other way, check your goals:

Keep moving forward, slow and steady, keeping that balance. One or two of those cows may not like you being in their way; they may moo quite loudly, but if your course is known and your balance true, they'll step aside and you will find clear pavement on the other side.

And when the pavement that has been with you for years, been the one constant in your life, your support, your footing, should suddenly turn to gravel, never to be seen in this lifetime again, hang on to the handlebars. The earth will shift under your tires, the gravel will bounce off your fenders, but The Navigator will keep you upright as long as you're moving forward.

The sun will come out tomorrow, but you have to go out on the front porch to see it. And when you arrive at your Wisdom, you may find it doesn't look anything like you thought it would

Don't let that stop you. If you've been following The Navigator, it'll be just the Wisdom you need.