A Trip to Italy

Italy. Her plans were complete. She had watched as many others had gone to this beautiful country. They came back sharing such wonderful stories and experiences about their trip. Italy was glorious and the finest place to travel on earth.

She began her preparations and saved her money. It took years to put aside enough funds to make this trip. It would be a once in a lifetime journey, but so worth all the sacrifices made to get there. As the time drew closer to her departure date, she got more and more excited. She couldn’t wait to experience the vacation she had heard so much about! She boarded the plane with visions of great Catholic Cathedrals and dazzling cities and villas. She could almost smell the sweet, fragrant vineyards and salty, coastal winds of the Mediterranean.

As she is dreaming in her window seat, looking down on the ocean, the captain’s voice comes over the speaker above her.

“We have had a change in flight plans. Your destination is no longer Italy. We will be landing in Holland. We’re so sorry for the inconvenience and we regret we are unable to offer any refunds for tickets purchased for Italy.”

Devastation sweeps over the girl. This is not what she expected or what she wants. Italy! She wants Italy! She has never heard of anyone taking a trip to Holland. There has got to be a way for the captain to land the plane in her Italy! She simply isn’t prepared for a vacation to Holland. Her suitcases are filled with beachwear and sandals.

Despite her prayers and pleadings, the plane lands in Holland where she and her luggage are left alone, alone to enjoy uncharted territory. She sees nothing that resembles the golden streets and rustic, antiquated buildings she so vividly pictured in her mind of Italy. But in Holland she must stay.

After days walking the streets of her new destination, the girl soon begins to notice the buildings are charming and lively with architecture as unique as the landscape. Many of the hillsides and fields offer colorful beauty in the tulips that spread for miles. It is almost impossible to describe the varieties that exist in those rows and rows of blooms! In place of cathedrals, she finds windmills of all shapes and sizes. There is much splendor in this hidden country. Holland has surprised her.

In her gallivanting, she has not forgotten Italy. She will always feel the pain associated with the detour that took her away from her lifelong dream. When she returns from her trip, she will continue to hear how fabulous Italy is, all she knows have traveled there. But to allow her thoughts to dwell on a place she cannot go, prevents her from beholding the loveliness her new land has to offer. She would not have chosen this side road and perhaps if given the choice, she would still choose the sun-swept Venetian beaches of Lido. And yet, how can she forget the sites she has seen! They have been more beautiful than she could have dreamed. The air in Holland is crisp and clear; the colors are vibrant and clean. Wildlife and countryside flourish among the waterways that connect the land. Nothing can compare, not even Italy.

The end of her venture comes before she is ready, but she arrives home to find there are others who have also been to the places she has traveled, others who have seen the beauty in the never-ending rows of color and the sunsets that take your breath away. She is not alone, as she once thought. She is happy to have found joy in a place she least expected and happy to know that Italy is not the only place in the world worth journeying to.

I heard this story in bits and pieces. I liked it so much, I had to come home and write it down. Although it's not told as the original probably was, it captures the main parts. I couldn't help but think of my own Holland and the various places that life takes us. They are unexpected and yet, when we take time to see those different destinations for what they are worth, we find more joy in them than we thought was possible.