From Connecting the Dots to a Masterpiece

We all know that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. However, some of us don't always keep in mind that that particular linear path is not the one that bears the most fruit for us (and for others) in the end. Most of the time our successes can be attributed to efficiency, but there are other, just as critical instances, where our successes are determined by our overall experience and what we have taken away from one particular scene that might be applicable at another. 

Steinbeck describes life's journeys like this, "A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find that after years of struggle we do not take a trip; the trip takes us."

There are so many moments in my life that I planned linearly that have in fact turned into something much more beautiful and intricate that I could have ever even thought to plan out! My plans, which connected me from point A to point B and so on, were like the connect the dots puzzles children do for fun. But when my plans were disrupted was when I was able to see the true beauty and art that is my unique life.

As clever individuals we all know that there is magnificent value in planning...I don't want to understate that. But the true test of cleverness is what we make out of those plans when they have been ripped and demolished leaving a completely new puzzle for us to make sense of. In those situations, we must continue to enjoy those moments for what they are, work on improving ourselves and our futures, and continue to derive our happiness, not solely on selfish foundations, but on the value we find in serving others. And that is where we go from connecting the dots to a unique and astonishing masterpiece!

(This is one of my favorite works by Van Gogh. I hope you can enjoy it too!)


As Always,

E