The Wrong Path

When I travelled to Malaysia with my friend, we planned to go to a temple. It was supposed to be simple. We need to get off from the second cable car’s station then follow the sign. We did get off from the station, but we didn’t see a sign. We both were clueless.

So, we went out to this door that led us to a car park. It was empty. It was kind of spooky- the fog covered the mountains and trees, the wind blew our hair, our teeth clenched to fight the coldness. Yet, we walked down the road, thinking it might lead us to the temple. We ended up walking on a difficult path to follow.

As we walked down the hill, I was thinking, “Why would they make such a hard route like this for tourists? I thought the temple is a famous attraction, they should invest for some better route. Besides, there’s nobody here, just the two of us. It’s a little bit suspicious, right?”

I was pissed off because I hate hiking. Thank God, I wore sneakers that day or else I would use my flip-flops and felt angrier. I complained all the time to my friend. This was torture for me. I was anxious the whole time, “Where are we?”

Time passed by, I started to accept the reality that we were lost. We might end up in some remote forest. God knows.

Just as we kept walking, we realized something. Our surroundings. I was taken aback with the beautiful view in front of my eyes. I always feel solitude in nature like this. The foggy forest around us. The quietness. The peacefulness. The air felt so fresh when I breathed in. As someone who lives in the polluted city, that felt nice. I was distracted and forget all the pain I had endured.

Not so long, we finally made it to the temple. We were just taking the route to the car parks. We both ended up laughing about it. We saw the temple was crowded. We both were confused. So how they all ended up here? Turned out, there is a long escalator connected from the temple to the cable car’s station. If only we saw the sign. We both laughed at it again. Such a fool.

I find this experience relatable with life in general.

Some people, they find a fast-track to their goal. They might be born with privilege. Just like the other tourists that take the escalator. They don’t have to go climb up and down the mountains like me and my friend. Their journey is far more convenient than us. Some people, they seem going to the wrong path. They don’t see the sign. They have to walk longer than the others. Just like both of us who have to suffer more, thinking we were lost in the middle of the forest.

Other people may think we were stupid. We were oblivious. We did not have to suffer if we just follow the right sign. But, they do not know what we gained during those difficult time. What we have discovered: the magnificent view. What we had become: resilient, believe in ourselves, and enjoying small things in life. It might seem stupid to them, but I didn’t regret it at all. In fact, I went to the same route again the next day- at that time to enjoy myself in solitude.

We may feel like we take the “wrong” path right now. We are not following our original plan. It may feel unbearable. We are going outside of our comfort zone. We are wondering, what is going on? When this will end? Where will it lead us to? Is this the right step? Will I get what I want after this? We are filled with so many thoughts.

One thing to remember:

“Every cloud has a silver lining”

There will always good things you can get even in such a difficult time. Regardless of how insignificant it is. We just need to enjoy the process. No matter how hard it is. We may find the new side in us that we have never seen before. Note this: we are beyond than what we think. Maybe all we need is pushing ourselves more, then we will see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Hanging there, you will never know what you will discover.

Your “wrong” path will turn out to be the best thing you ever tried!

NV

(Written in my LinkedIn Page on 21 September 2020)