Rantings of a Pilgrim on a Journey

Seriously, pilgrim reminds me of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. But I'm not going to write about that. It's just that I'm reminded of that.

I'm not even sure if the term pilgrim is hip at all in today's world. Every generation and every sub-culture comes up with new words to convey what they're saying. Even old words takes on new life and new meaning. One sub-culture might use one word one way, which sound totally cool and acceptable. To another person from a different place, culture, and time the word might be totally insulting. I know a few but I'm not going to get into that for now.

It's seems like it was just yesterday that I was growing up in a backwater, hidden small town on the island of Borneo. Just a school boy back home, having cycled a few miles from the mission school, one begun by the La Salle brothers. Back then traffic on the road was light, and it was much safer to cycle on such roads.

Today, it's a health hazard to attempt cycling in a city with heavy traffic. One might easily die getting knocked down by careless drivers or drivers who are unaccustomed to see a middle aged man, dressed smartly & cycling! If it's Amsterdam or London, no one might bother. But a cyclist commuting daily might be a rare sight indeed.

Where I'm from, I was thinking that a cyclist who is spared death by drivers, might still die a faster death by carbon monoxide poisoning. Or one might die from a heart attack from the way drivers attempt F1 racing on busy roads! In particular, I dislike those cars with loud exhausts and equally loud techno music thumping oppressively, announcing to all in its path to get out of the way. I'm wondering if anyone has ever died from an overdose of super loud music!

Speaking of roads, the roads in my city are deteriorating faster than crumbling colonial era mansions (which I'm quite sure isn't around anymore, except one that's now a museum). A lack of maintenance has made driving a more exciting adventure, avoiding pot holes and ugly bumps here and there.  

Mind you, my city is a wonderful and peaceful place to stay - most times - especially during the holiday season. The roads are clear, and what used to take 30 minutes becomes a 10 minutes drive. Heavenly bliss! This might occur once in a while when public holidays are due. Fortunately, my country has one of the most public holidays in the world. So we do enjoy more moments or road bliss than Australia or the States or Japan.

So take you two wheeler for a spin when your public holiday begins! You might be on a journey of discovery. And if that's not your thing, you might want to pick up that old old book by John Bunyan, and set out on a journey with him!