Are We There Yet?

As a kid I asked, "Are we there yet?"

And my parent's would just respond, "Just go to sleep and by the time you wake up we will be."

So I did, and to my child brain, still being formed with new information of the world daily, I thought my parents had taught me my first bit of magic.

Go to sleep, and you will get to your destination faster.

So begun my many sleepy years. Every roadtrip when the view out the window turned to nothing but dusty desert roads, I slept. I loved redeye flights because I knew how much easier it'd be for me to fall asleep. A bad day? Take a nap and tomorrow will come sooner.

My favorite form of magic had become time travel by sleep. I never cared about the journey I missed or the opportunities during the time I fast forwarded. I only cared about my destination and getting there as quickly as I could.

Now I realize how I took this magic and used it in a deeper part of my every day life.

I have goals and I have dreams and when my heart is fully set on them, I sleep. I close my eyes to the lessons waiting to be learned and the experiences I am supposed to live first and all I do, day and night, is dream.

I dream of tomorrow while living today. I dream of next month or next year, I wake to see I am still not there, then I get angry and anxious and go back to sleep, so I can once again, just dream.

Dreams aren't bad. To dream is to clearly see the desired destination and a dream every now and again is a great GPS reminder you are on the right path.

But then finally came a day I couldn't sleep on the plane, and thank God I had a window seat. I opened the window covering slowly and quietly, hoping to not wake the passenger asleep next to me, and right before my eyes was the thing I have been missing my whole life.

Nothing but the deep blue ocean. For miles and miles it was just water, not some majestic view of rolling hills and towns, which I am sure you'd expect me to say.

But it was the ocean, a part of this world I had never seen before and may never see again, but thanks to this journey and this plane at this time, and for once, choosing not to sleep, I get to see something I have never seen.

Then it all came crashing on me like the waves in that ocean. The magic was never sleep, the most potent and powerful magic comes from staying awake and being present for the journey. Being awake for the hours of open dirt roads, getting out for all the potty breaks, grabbing snacks and giving an awkward smile-nod to strangers, and stepping foot in a town you've never been before, even if it is just for a second, is all magical moment after magical moment.

With sleep, I may have felt like I got through my journey quicker, but sleep has never changed the fact that the journey still existed, I just wasn't awake to see or experience all it had to offer me.

So, from here to your goal, whether by plane or car, try to wake up and be as present as possible, because even if the journey is long, I promise you, from personal experience,

you won't want to sleep through it.