This was a question/prompt for a writing exercise done for a meeting of my writing group in December 2022. I came across it today going through folders to organize ephemera related to some larger writing projects. Seeing it again now, I thought it had some fun associations and wordplay, just a nice little metaphor/allegory for life that might give someone a smile or a bit of inspiration, so I decided to share 🙂

Roger Cornfoot / The long and winding road, CC BY-SA 2.0

Question: If life is a journey, not a destination, how do you pack?

Answer: Well, are you traveling fast or slow? Are you staying at the Palmer House or at a Motel 6? Do you pack sandwiches to eat in the car? Stop at roadside rest and cook hamburgers and hotdogs on one of those old grills for a picnic? Drive through McDonald’s at an exit off the interstate? Or do you travel along a “Blue Highway“ and stop at a little mom-and-pop diner?

What is your mode of transportation? Are you hiking? Biking? Motorcycling? Driving? Are you taking a Greyhound bus? Are you flying? Taking the train, And if so, are you traveling coach, sleeper car, or private bedroom? Are you making a transatlantic voyage on an ocean liner?

Do you prefer traveling solo or as part of a group quest?

All of these things will influence what you need to pack. I recently saw a photo of an old steamer trunk that folded open to create a chest of drawers. Another opened out to reveal a closet full of dresses. If you were traveling first class on the titanic, this is probably how you would pack. Except you wouldn’t have done the packing, your maid would have. That’s a very different type of journey van the one involving a backpack and a good pair of shoes along a dirt road.

Finally, even though life is a journey, not a destination, it is helpful to know where you’re going. The road to heaven looks quite different from the road to hell, for example, and you’ll need to pack accordingly.

Hell is easy. You can pack light if you’re going to hell. According to my grandmother, you won’t even need a suitcase; a handbasket will do. The road to hell is easy to traverse, as it has a “slippery slope” and is paved with “good intentions.” And it is also easy to find. Just fall in with the wrong crowd; they will take you with them.

Getting to heaven, on the other hand, can be confusing. As a popular song once said, paradoxically, if you want to get to heaven you have to raise a little hell.

If you want to go to Heaven, you may find a good guidebook absolutely essential. Several good ones exist—for example, the Bible, the Torah, and the Quaran—but they require close reading and ongoing consultation.

One last perspective regarding the “journey” comes from this passage of literary advice from a favorite author, J. R. R. Tolkien, in which hobbit Bilbo Baggins shares his thoughts on travel with his nephew:

It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.

A scenario that pretty much eradicates anyone’s ability to plan or pack!