Don’t Miss the Trip

My father, Don Gallegos, retired as the president of King Soopers back in 1998. He was a strong advocate for excellence in customer service, something I learned from him at a very young age. After he retired, companies would hire him to come in and give talks on customer service. One of the things I liked most about those talks was the story he would always tell at the end of each one. And it went something like this:

While in grade school, a young boy can't wait for high school to start. And then, once high school starts, he can't wait for college. While he's in college, he can't wait to get his career started and find someone to marry. Then he gets married and starts his career. Now he can't wait to have children, first one, then two, then three. Then he can't wait for the kids to grow up. Then, he can't wait for the kids to go to college.

Meanwhile, he stays focused on his career and can't wait for the next promotion. Then he and his wife talk about how they can't wait to retire to enjoy themselves on a beach in Hawaii. Then retirement comes, and they find themselves on that beach in Hawaii, and the husband looks at the wife and says, "Well, we finally made it." But did they?

He's lived his whole life looking forward to what's next, focused on retirement, and could have missed the most essential parts of his life. The story's point is that our lives are not destinations to reach - but journeys to experience. My dad would end those talks by saying, "It's important not to miss the trip."

I just returned from my 7th week-long motorcycle road trip with one of my best friends. Each year, we pick a location to meet and explore different parts of the country. We met 23 years ago when I was doing a loan for him and his young family after they were transferred to Denver. We hit it off and stayed in touch all these years, even though he now lives in Texas. We both started riding street bikes in 2015.

On this trip last week to Deadwood, South Dakota, I was reminded of my dad's wisdom. I have to admit there have been times when I've been guilty of being too focused on the future and not the present. When you're goal-oriented and success-focused, you tend to focus on whatever is next. And that is something that I've had to learn to be on guard against.

The truth is none of us are guaranteed tomorrow, so being focused on the next thing carries a lot of risk with it. We must remember what, and especially who, is truly important to us. I suspect a lot of us could benefit from this advice.

And then do what my friend and I do: find a date on the calendar and commit to spending time with the people we care most about.

Quote of the week:

“No one wishes they had worked more on their deathbed.”

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