The Road Trip

Two very different people decide to embark upon a road trip.
The first person is very clear about the route they wish to take, the destinations they want to reach, what they want to do...so they plan what they will see and do in each place. On their trip then, they are sure to see the key sights as determined by the opinions, wisdom and experiences of the experts in the travel books they'd read. Each step of the way they can 'tick off' each milestone they reach and feel satisfied that they completed what they set out to do. No deviations are desired. By achieving and seeing those things mapped out, they can also tell everyone else clearly what they did, what they saw and others will know what they are talking about. The planning of their journey minimises their anxiety and helps them feel safe, and enables them to feel a sense of accomplishment at the end; they know they achieved what they set out to do.
The second person does not plan their trip but merely starts their journey with the intention of seeing where this takes them. Of course, this is fraught with potential perils:

1) they don't know where they are going, so what if their vulnerability is exposed and they get attacked by someone?
2) what if they go round in circles because they are unfamiliar with how to move forward?
3) what if they get lost and are alone with strangers ...somewhere cold and uncomfortable and dangerous?
4) what if they run out of money?
5) what if they miss all the important sights and experiences on the way?
6) what if they go to places that scare them with people who can only speak in a foreign language around them?
7) how will they know when the journey has come to an end if they don't know where the final destination is?
It is clear, however, that a reverse tale exists where infinate possibilities can arise purely down to the lack of planning and pre-determined path

1) what if people don't perceive them as vulnerable and let them travel without fear or concern?
2) what if concern about moving in circles is not realised? All journeys have signs and landmarks that guide the way...it might mean journeying past them over and over until they become familiar however...
3) what if they use their voice and intuition to ask for direction and help if they become lost? They might be surprised at the hand of strangers who will direct them
4) what if they trust that if money runs out they can always get a job...make things...do some dirty or menial work...it doesn't add up to not start the journey for fear regarding money
5) they might or might not miss all the important sights and experiences on the way. It depends on how they define important...there are those sights and experiences people desire because they've been guided others but there is also beauty that they never knew existed...they need to ask who is this journey for?
6) there can be scarey places on both planned and unplanned journeys due to circumstances, chance, universal law, coincidence...the unplanned journey becomes less dangerous when you talk to people in that place who can share wisdom. Foreign languages dissolve through shared connections and attempts to speak in the other person's tongue.
7) they'll feel when it's time for that trip to end...they don't have to do anything or go anywhere until it feel right

The one last advantage of this trip is that there are no expectations or outcomes...experiences can be accepted for what they are and as they happen..the lack of planning means there are no 'musts', 'shoulds', 'have got tos' .
I have chosen to take that road less travelled (cliched i know :-} but somehow true)...I have moments of doubt...I have moments of excitement...i hope to feel brave as i start my new journey to who knows where - i have a vague inkling of where i'd like to go, but I'm trying to temper my will and give my trust a leg up as i begin....Where's you're journey taking you?