Detour

Riding my bike in to work this morning, I encountered a train crossing where I usually travel. No problem, I thought, as there are many more crossings to connect me to my route as I paralleled the tracks. As I rode, it became apparent that this was a long, slow train, and I would not be crossing and continuing on my usual route as thought. So, I traveled on until I could cross over the tracks after the train had passed. My detour took me down some streets I don't usually travel, either by foot, bicycle or automobile. It's not that there was amazing scenery, or that where I was traveling was really noteworthy at all. But, what it did offer was a change in mood and thought for a few minutes and some distraction to the fact that I was pedaling against cold wind and rain. In this distraction I found the most simplistic pleasure - my voluntary detour had allowed me a chance to do something different, to look and think about things alternatively, and be sucked out of the the mundane and alerted to the fact that there is more going on than would normally be noticed if you take the opportunity to capture it.