There are approximately 4,071,000 miles of roads in the United States, 2,678,000 miles  paved and 1,394,000 miles unpaved. Many of those paved roads are filled with potholes, but that’s another conversation for another time. I want to take a moment to think about those unpaved roads…

I grew up in an area that had just about as many unpaved roads as it did paved roads and one of the things that I learned early in life is that those unpaved roads can take you to some very interesting places. When I was younger, my mode of transportation was two wheels plus my legs and feet on a bicycle, peddling just as fast as I could. Now a days, it’s an ole 2006 Dodge Ram Pickup.

Not too long back, I was out on an adventure and I came up on an unpaved road. It was rocky and rough. I thought of “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost and turned right and headed for was I was hoping was adventure. I bumped and bounced my way up and down, from side to side through the hills and curves, until I came to a place where a little creek was running across the road. I drive a Dodge, so I headed straight on across that little, not worried one little bit, because I was created for adventure (wink). More bumps, bouncing, ups, downs, side to sides, hills and curves until eventually the road ran out. Really! It just stopped and there was nothing but woods.

I surveyed the situation a little closer and saw a trail disappearing into the woods and decided to get out and go for a walk. After a short little hike, I could hear water and of course got very excited and journeyed on. And then just around the corner, I found it – a beautiful waterfall. The water was cascading over the rocks and into a nice little, very relaxing looking pool. The sun was beginning to go down and was at just the right angle to hit the cascading falls and provide that magical effect that makes your jaw drop and your mouth say “WOW!”

I sat on a nearby large rock and soaked in all the beauty I was surrounded by. I allowed all my senses to take in the moment. It was one of those moments. You know a moment where thoughts align, life makes sense and you are at peace. It was very nice and I will remember the moment for the rest of my life.

Now here is the most interesting thing: I would have totally missed the adventure of that amazing moment, if I had not turned onto that rocky road. In life, we are presented with many moments of choice. Moments of choice where we have to decide what we are going to do. Sometimes we don’t have a choice and just have to go with the flow. Don’t be afraid of the rocky road that life brings your way. Embrace them, enjoy them, learn from them and get the adventure they have in store for you. Robert Frost probably said it best when he said: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I — I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.”