Two weekends ago, I went on a spontaneous trip to the beach with my sister and a few friends. The four of us decided to go for a trip without knowing exactly how to get to our destination given the Covid protocols. We did not know what to expect, what requirements we needed, and how far off track we would be.
Getting into the debacle, I was ready to head home if the universe did not allow the trip. It was a trip I knew could fail and one I would not mind if ended in disappointment.
“If you expect disappointment, then you can never really get disappointed”
-MJ in the latest Spiderman
A little pessimistic, but this was my mindset for the trip. Good or bad, I was ready to roll with it.
At 8 am that Saturday morning, we were ready to make everything up along the way. We were down for the adventure and the excitement of the uncertainty. Bags and food in hand, we embarked on our journey—unaware of the problem we were about to face along the way.
Looking back, I see how one small mistake snowballed into more problems. On the bright side, everything ended on a good note.
First things first, we made the wrong decision to ride a van to Pangasinan that passed through La Union. The plan was to be let off in La Union and get a minibus to our destination. This was the advice from someone who goes to La Union regularly. We got on the van without knowing that the driver would be unaware of our stop. Despite making our stop clear, the driver happily sped past the town, forcing us to be dropped by the curb.
Getting off, we found ourselves in the wrong province. We were way off track.
Luckily, one of our companions noticed minibusses heading back to our destination. All we had to do was wait. And in less than 10 minutes, the adventure was back on.
We boarded a minibus back to the correct province and settled down for a 60 to 90-minute ride. That is until we were stopped at the border of the correct province. All passengers were to present their vaccination certificates and ID at the border.
Innocently, we complied.
Despite the ease of Covid restrictions, this province was still strict with its borders. As tourists, we were only allowed entry once we had a confirmed booking with an accredited facility. Something we did not have.
Our original plan was to wing it. It was a weekend and the summer, so most hotels/resorts were fully booked. We were hoping to walk in on some last-minute canceled reservations. In the worst case, we were ready to sleep in some shed.
It was part of the thrill of the adventure, but the border patrol thought otherwise.
Since we got off track, we faced a problem we did not anticipate.
If we were let off at the right stop, we would not have to pass these borders, and we would have already been on a bus heading closer and closer to our destination.
But there was nothing we could do. So all four of us whipped out our cell phones and scoured the web for a place to stay. Sadly, every place we talked to were fully booked as expected.
An hour passed, and I was ready to call it a day if necessary. It was already 12 noon, and we were hungry.
But we were adamant. So we decided to wait and search the internet for another 30 mins, hoping people would reply or get back to us. And right as we were resolving to give up, people began to call us back.
A glimmer of hope came shining through.
My sister got a call on some last-minute canceled booking. Our other friend found a transient house that willingly spared us 2 rooms. When that did not materialize, they took it upon themselves to forward us to another resort that successfully cleared us through the border.
We were hyped but had to wait another hour or so for all these things to tie together. Overall, we spent a little more than 2 hours teetering between aye or nay until all signs pointed to aye.
The next thing we knew, we were back on a bus heading closer to the beach. Beach, here we come!
The bus dropped us off at the town right next to the beach of our choice. We just needed to take two more jeepney rides and a tricycle to get there. Easy.
In less than an hour, sand was between our toes, and the sunset was in our eyes. Life was good.
Even if a 3-4 hour trip got off track and turned into a 6-hour journey, it was worth it. With the warm sand underfoot and the sounds of waves crashing under the sun’s embrace, who would look ill of how things turned out?
Getting off track may be annoying. It could also lead one to lose a lot of hope. But sometimes, the bumps in the road help us figure out where things go wrong, how to do things right the next time around, and even make us better people.
With our experience, we know exactly when things fell off and the right thing to do next time. We learned the hard way, and we are not mad at the fact.
At the moment, my life is off track. I left a stable job and am still discovering what I want to do next. I also fell off my timeline of 1 month of pure rest. I am resting more today than I did a month ago without clear plans on when I will start actively looking for a job.
My view of the path is murky.
Your life may be off track, too. It may seem a little bleak, and it may not be easy, but that does not mean that this is the end. There is a path for you, doors will open—even if you do not see it.
Even if you feel stuck at the borders of life and it is starting to feel like a lifetime, things will turn out in the end. A glimmer of hope may come in the next 30 minutes, hour, or day. It may be easy to forget, but you have time.
The next thing you know, you will find yourself on a bus heading exactly to your destination, and If not, right next to it.
Life was never meant to be a straight path, even if it seems that way with the predestined pre-school to a college education. Graduating from college does not mean a clear-cut career path for you.
The regular nine to five which stemmed from the grueling demands of the Industrial Revolution is starting to look like an outdated concept of the past. Check out this article by Forbes on the flaws of this old system.
The world is turning on a digital axis, and society is turning a blind eye. No one will know what will happen in the next decade. So it is fine if you are off the traditional path and if you are taking your time to make a new one.
I am off the track of society’s expectations, and I do not plan on getting back on it.
Busyzi 
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