It is the place where someone, or something, is going. The destination.
Destination is a popular word in the world of life philosophy. Eleventy people have uttered quotes about this ideology.
“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.” — Greg Anderson
“Sometimes it’s the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination.” — Drake
“Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome.” — Arthur Ashe
“Success is a journey, not a destination.” — Ben Sweetland
“Always the journey, never the destination.” — Simon Rattle
You get the point. But I guess those guys have never flown to Hawaii. I’d rather be swimming off the beaches of Maui than eating peanuts on a Boeing.
Anyway, historically, this date seems to be one for destinations.
We can start way back in 1493 when Christopher Columbus discovered Puerto Rico. That guy. He made four trips across the Atlantic Ocean from Spain. The dates were 1492, 1493, 1498, and 1502. His destination was not a place really, but instead, a direct water route that would lead from Europe to Asia. He never found that route, but he bumped all around the Caribbean.
The next people with a destination were those puritan Pilgrims. From England. In 1620, their Mayflower reached Cape Cod. They bumped around a lot too. As the Mayflower approached land in what is now the United States, the crew spotted Cape Cod, early in the morning, on November 9. They made the decision to head south and go to the mouth of the Hudson River in New York. Apparently, that is where they intended to make their brave new plantation.
Don’t those quotes say it’s all about the journey? Apparently so, because as the Mayflower headed south, it took on some rough waters and nearly shipwrecked. Collectively, they said, “Let’s get off this boat, Pilgrim.” Rather than risk another attempt to go south, they anchored down and explored Cape Cod. In what is now Provincetown Harbor. That was on today’s date.
For the record, those chilly Pilgrims spent the next month and a half exploring Cape Cod, trying to figure out where they would build their plantation. On December 25, 1620, they had finally decided upon Plymouth. They got out their little Pilgrim hammer and nails, and began construction of their first buildings.
Fast forward 200 years. We had a United States by then, and had been through a few Presidents. Yes, we were on Thomas Jefferson, who sent a crew of explorers westward into the wilderness. And away they went. This all started in May of 1804. By today’s date, November 19, in 1805, the expedition, led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, reached the Pacific Ocean. They were the first European Americans to cross the west in this way. On a personal note. Some days, I just walk through the house and say the good name, Sacagawea. For no reason at all. Sacagawea.
Again, a century forward, to this date in 1905. The steamer “Hilda” sank that day in the English Channel, and 100 people drowned. They did not reach their destination, or perhaps, they did.
And then we go out of this world, in 1969. That is when Apollo 12’s Charles Conrad and Alan Bean became the third and fourth humans on the Moon. Of the 24 human beings — all NASA Astronauts — who have traveled from Earth to the Moon, only twelve have walked on its surface. So far.
Walkers, are:
Neil Armstrong (1930-2012)—Apollo 11
Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (1930-)—Apollo 11
Charles “Pete” Conrad (1930-1999)—Apollo 12
Alan Bean (1932-2018)—Apollo 12
Alan B. Shepard Jr. (1923-1998)—Apollo 14
Edgar D. Mitchell (1930-2016)—Apollo 14
David R. Scott (1932-)—Apollo 15
James B. Irwin (1930-1991)—Apollo 15
John W. Young (1930-2018)— Apollo 16
Charles M. Duke (1935-)—Apollo 16
Eugene Cernan (1934-2017)— Apollo 17
Harrison H. Schmitt (1935-)—Apollo 17
All boys. No girls. In case you missed it.
So, as you can see, November 19 is a day for destinations. And journeys. I hope your path is good on this date. Because, no matter where you go, there you are.
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“The only journey is the one within.”
― Rainer Maria Rilke
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“For where thy treasure is, there also will thy heart be.”
― Anonymous, Holy Bible: King James Version
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“If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up someplace else.”
― Yogi Berra
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Let me know when you get there.
