The moment I stepped through the gates of the Old City in Jerusalem, I breathed a sigh of contentment. It felt familiar. I had walked in and out of various gates as often as possible several years before. Some streets and turns seemed as if I’d traveled them many more times than I had. I can easily get from one quarter to another. I can take a few shortcuts. Yet there is so much I don’t know. There are many streets I haven’t taken. As much as I have explored, it is a small fraction of the total possibilities.

There are adventures in the familiar.

It is in our routines that we can neglect to see the opportunities around us. We can miss the details we pass because of our focus on the destination ahead. It’s important to know where we’re going, but each step along the journey is essential. We can’t get to the destination without taking each step. If we aren’t intentional about each step, we miss out.

One of the beauties of Old Jerusalem is the side streets and passageways. I glance to the left and right and wonder: Who lives there? What are they thinking? What do they need? What has happened here? What will happen in the future? I look at the light shining on one wall and casting shadows under the archways or roof beams. The scene always changes.

So do I.

So do you.

Change with each step you take today. Explore the familiar. You’re not just here to bide the time as it passes. You cannot get back a single moment or step. Live well.