“Man…whoever said progress was a slow process was you talkin’ ‘bout me? I’m a PIMP! Plus, I got the magic stick 🍢.” – 50 Cent
While driving 🛣 in the Arizona desert 🌵 on Interstate 40, heading east towards New Mexico, I came across a heavy rainstorm 🌧 that spanned for more than 30 miles. Many of the cars on the road slowed down, while a few of them pulled over to the side of the road. Feeling adventurous, I maintained my speed and drove in the heavy rain for about 30 minutes. After driving in the rain, my car that was once covered in dirt and bugs got mostly cleaned up. The drive not only showed me that not only do the storms in life transform us into better versions of ourselves, but also that no path in life is easy, regardless of what path we choose.
Driving long-distance instead of flying on an airplane gave me extra time to reflect on life from a bigger picture. Instead of flying 30,000+ feet to arrive at my destination faster, I gained a 30,000+ foot view on where my life was and where it is headed. Whether it was the paths in my career, relationships, or spiritual life, I saw that the obstacle is the way and we overcome obstacles by going through them while keeping our feet moving in the process.
The night before, I drove to the Grand Canyon West, a remote area of Arizona that is known for the Grand Canyon Skywalk. When I reached the destination, according to the GPS, I realized that I had passed the cabins I planned to stay for the night. The problems were that there was no one to ask for help in the area, no cell phone signal to call the office and ask for directions, and the sun was about to set.
Driving in the Arizona desert not too long before getting lost….
I got lost for almost an hour, driving about 30 minutes back to a part of the highway that had a cell phone signal to make a call. By the time I found an area that had cell phone signal, the sun had already set 🌑. After that call, I drove for another 20 minutes back to the area I had left. Nervously not knowing where the road sign is that showed where the cabins are, I started breathing heavily. I was reminded that “nothing is more important than how we feel” from personal development, and took two deep breaths to calm down.
After reaching a road checkpoint, the person standing by instructed me to follow two trucks ahead of me who were heading towards the cabins. When I checked-in the office for the cabin, I was told to follow another dirt road that will lead to the cabins ☠. After finding it hard to locate the dirt road that leads to the cabins, the security guard in his vehicle instructed me to follow him to the cabin I was going to stay for the night. Getting lost in the Arizona desert reminded me that we sometimes need to go through a step-by-step (and sometimes inconvenient) process before reaching a destination or goal.
Relaxing in the cabin after a long detour that evening, with Porto’s coming in clutch for dinner. Woke up the next morning and found the ranches nearby the cabins. 🤙
The following evening, a few hours after driving through the storm 🌧 in the Arizona desert 🌵, I was challenged to drive another two hours from Gallup to Albuquerque in New Mexico after the sun had set. There were no places in Gallup to dine-in for dinner and use the public restroom (thanks lockdowns!). The only place that had public restrooms open was Walmart (going to Wally Wally Wally World! 🛒).
The issues with driving at night in this area were that there are no lights to brighten the road and hardly any reflective paint to clearly show the lanes. In this 140-mile long stretch between the two cities, there were two construction zones with only one lane open in each direction. The construction zones were in areas where the roads went downhill, making it harder to control speeds. Not to mention, the outside temperature dropped to close to freezing. Surely nothing can go wrong here in an area with so many hazards!
Ordered some Mickey D’s (aka McDonald’s) from the Walmart that had an open public restroom before driving two hours in the dark, New Mexico desert 😌. I was later welcomed to a lovely screensaver in the hotel room telling me to relax 😴.
I started breathing heavily in nervousness, like the night before, not fully expecting the obstacles that lied ahead. However, this drive from Gallup to Albuquerque in the dark reminded me that God gives us what we need at a moment in time. There was a truck that drove at a reasonable speed, which I followed for about 40 miles through those two dark construction zones and freezing temperatures. When we go through a challenge in life, we often find an ally who joins us and gives us support, whether it’s morale or love, which makes the journey a bit more bearable. After taking a few deep breaths and reminding myself what I fight for these days, I calmed down and focused on the drive.
When I arrived at the hotel in Albuquerque that evening, I could only laugh at myself for going through those experiences driving long-distance when I could have flown on an airplane to get to places faster and so that I can write a post that simply tells: “No path is easy, no matter what path is chosen”.
In a world that prides itself in instant gratification and convenience, we often fail to cultivate the patience and roots needed to weather life’s storms. Instead of taking the time to have a meaningful conversation with others, we resort to texting. Instead of allowing our character and results to humbly shine, we resort to sharing a highlight of our lives in social media, glossing over the trials that made that highlight worth sharing. Instead of having the understanding that we cannot always have things right away, we order online and expect free two-day shipping.
We often look for a magic stick we can wave that will magically solve our problems, when in reality, it’s the slower process that makes the most progress in the long run. Rather than getting a 50 per-“cent” experience, we get closer to a 100 percent experience when we don’t take shortcuts.
Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy sending emojis in my texts 😁. I love sharing “past and present” pictures in social media to show how good looking I was and still am. I wondered what my life had been missing before free two-day shipping became widely available. At the same time, there comes a point where we must also embrace a degree of discomfort to become better versions of ourselves.
And that discomfort is what makes those moments of comfort that much worth it as we grow.
Take a stand. Find a path worthwhile chasing and fighting for. In the process, you’ll build the character and patience that attracts the right partner and the right people in your life.