So(ul)journ!

We’ve been renting a car these last two weeks, traveling through Scotland and England at our whim and choosing—that’s the beauty of car rentals. A few days ago, it was time to return our car and take up public transportation. We were heading to Scarborough later that day, and as there wasn’t room in the car for me, I turned to public transportation to get there. England’s public transportation network of taxis, buses, and trains gave me confidence that I’d make it from Leeds to the seaside just fine. Here are a few observations along the way.

My first observation is that using public transportation means you don’t truly dictate your timeline. You can estimate, and if you’re flexible, you can also modify your plan. But there is one thing for sure: you’re going to wait for your connections along the way.

My first connection was a bus. I had initially planned to take a bus to the Leeds train station, which was closer to the city center, involving a 30-minute ride. The car rental agent suggested a taxi or a bus stop that was a good distance away, which they could drive me to. Not wanting to pay for a taxi or put them out, I asked about a bus to Harrogate. He got excited and pointed to a stop a hundred meters down the road. So, I modified my first destination and hoofed it to the bus stop.

My second observation is that you are going to wait, so patience is a virtue. There was a load of information available on the bus stop sign, including a bus schedule. As I had just missed the last bus to Harrogate, my wait time was going to be fifty minutes. You can monitor the bus’s arrival time via a website that gives minute-by-minute updates. You can also signal the bus to stop at your stop by texting a number; however, that didn’t work. So when the time arrived, I knew I was going to have to wave the bus down. Curious, are you a frantic waver or do you give the subtle hand wave? I discovered I’m a “step closer to the curb and with my elbow slightly bent, give the driver a half wave while giving my head a nod” type. It worked just fine. As the bus came to a stop, I climbed on board and paid by tapping my credit card on the meter.

The ride was really quite comfortable. I sat in a window seat and watched the world go by as I listened to my Audible book. I’ve been listening to David Brooks’s How to Get to Know People, which is kind of funny as the first part of the book is about taking earphones out and starting up conversations. So I reckon I was a slow learner. I have to study before putting it all into practice, I suppose. I also multi-tasked, and between watching the world pass by (I actually noticed a falcon—could have been a hawk—swooping toward some sort of prey over a recently mowed field), I used the bus’s Wi-Fi to load an app for the Northern Train System so I could order my train passage. The ride was about forty minutes long, and I arrived with a day ticket purchased for travel from Harrogate to Scarborough. Such productivity is hopeless if you drive your own way; I kind of like the bus.

Upon arriving at the train station, I discovered that my train, which would require a change of trains at York, departs in ten minutes. Enough time for a quick WC stop, and then on my way. The ride to York had four or five stops, and we arrived with eighteen minutes to spare before my next train to Scarborough. That was exciting—enough time for a dirty chai and a ham and cheese toasty from the local cafe, and then a quick walk to track eight to catch the train.

My third observation is that there are two types of people on a train: the front-facing folks and those who really don’t bother. The front-facing folks object to riding backward, citing motion sickness as a primary concern. The more philosophical front-facing folks will hail the virtues of seeing where they are heading, knowing what’s coming up. Their journey is the horizon, and they want to see it coming.

Now, for the journey on the trains, I decided that I will be a person who is not bothered about facing forward. For the last two weeks of car rental, my eyes were fixed facing forward. I had no option to gaze about and see the amazing vistas we were traveling through. Therefore, for this first day of being a passenger, I decided to face backward.

As the train pulls out of the station, we are soon passing fields, one after the other, all enclosed by dry-set stone walls. Rivers, or perhaps canals, meander alongside the train, with an occasional bridge making the river seem to hop to the other side of the track. What I notice is that there is much to see, and I can gaze at things as the train passes. I kind of think that looking backward, you can see so much more than gazing forward. Think about this for a moment: When you are looking forward, something may catch your eye, but it is quickly behind you, out of view. Looking backward, you can continue to gaze at things of interest until they fade into the distance. The scenery just seems to hang about longer when looking backward. Fields give way to forests, and forests give way to plains (maybe moors) as we come closer to the seaside.

As I watched out the window, I mused that much of my life is lived facing backward. As a student of scriptures, most of my studies involve gazing backward, attempting to look at the lives of people who lived and died thousands of years ago. I interpret scriptures through their culture and experiences. And because I believe that these writings still can speak to us today, much of my time is spent reflecting upon the relevance of these contemplations to our contemporary society.

I am also interested in the ancestry of my family. Our sojourn began with visiting the graves of my father’s family (you can check out that story in some of my first posts). I enjoy traveling to places where they lived, thrived, and died, and where they were buried. Their stories, garnered through birth, baptism, marriage, and death records, coupled with land records and newspaper articles, all paint a picture of where I come from; they anchor me.

Parts of our trip in England involved visiting castles where ancient people lived prior to the Medieval period. The land or buildings situated upon it changed hands after each invasion of more and more violent people. This history intrigues me, and not surprisingly, much of my DNA includes Neanderthal, early Britain Germanic/Saxon, Viking, and more. The land of my forebears and its history of conquest and invasion comprise the essence of who I am.

I also realize I’m in a phase of my life where I have been around longer than I am likely still to live. There is something freeing about embracing that reality. In the coming years, I shall be looking into when and where I will likely settle down and retire. Wherever and whenever that may be, one thing is certain: I shall gaze backward and celebrate with appreciation the good that has come my way.

Some people, the forward-facing folks, embrace the journey ahead, always eager to see what’s coming. They find excitement and meaning in the unknown horizons. Others, like myself, often find meaning in looking backward, reflecting on the paths we’ve traveled and the experiences that have shaped us.

So, how about you? Are you more of a forward-facing person, always looking ahead to what’s next, or do you often look back, finding significance in the journey you’ve already taken? How does your perspective shape the way you experience your life? I’d love to hear your thoughts and stories.”