Murphy Windmill or Bust!

Sometimes, the journey is more interesting than the destination!

Katie and I spent the day at Golden Gate Park yesterday. Our primary objective was to visit the de Young Museum to see the “Birth of Impressionism” exhibit, on loan from the Musee d’Orsay in Paris. I have twice visited d’Orsay, which is one of my favorite art museums, and I was eager to see these masterpieces again, and share the experience with my good friend. I was not disappointed. (If you have the opportunity to do so, go! Don’t delay; the exhibit ends September 6, 2010.)

I visit Golden Gate park periodically, most especially enjoying the museums around the Music Concourse. However, I had never explored the rest of the park, and I was especially eager to see the windmills at the west end of the park. We both have a sense of adventure and the day was cool but pleasant, so armed with map, camera and Katie’s iPhone GPS system, we decided to find the windmills.

We wandered through the Botanical Gardens first. Katie is a floral artist, and she easily identified the plants and flowers while I happily took photos of things I found pretty and/or interesting. (And in a future visit, I will plan to spend a lot more time in the gardens. But today, I was focused on seeing one of the windmills.)

It was a lovely walk; we talked about life, love, our children, some of our travel dreams, TV programs that make us laugh, and many other things. We periodically stopped to rest our feet and check our map. We didn’t always take the paved path; the “higher ground” was sometimes a dirt path, and we had to be mindful of potential “natural disasters” -- gopher holes and uneven terrain.

The paved path provided its own challenges: Bicyclists zipped by without warning, startling me as they came within inches of us. (The “ring-ring” of a bicycle bell would certainly have been appreciated.) Joggers tended to be more courteous, and usually said “Thank you” as we moved over to give them space. And, of course, Katie and I watched out for each other, as friends do.

Finally, we neared our destination. We knew we were close because we could see the ocean, and the map showed us that Murphy Windmill was just around the corner. I was eager to see a real windmill -- up close and not just from the window of a train in Holland.

We rounded the bend …

And found the scaffolding, barrier fencing, and the Public Works sign that said that the windmill was being renovated. If I hadn’t seen the picture on the sign, I would not have been able to identify this structure as a windmill.

Was I disappointed? Yes. Was I amused? Well, yes, that too. It was, after all, an adventure. And while I didn’t see exactly what I had expected, I got to experience many other things that made the journey worthwhile: Friendship and laughter, a long walk that made my grateful for healthy legs (and decent walking shoes), the opportunity to take pictures of many pretty flowers and a hawk resting in a tree, the fresh scent of eucalyptus trees, and the sense of adventure that comes from exploring someplace new.

And a reminder that while sometimes my path doesn’t take me where I think it should, if I appreciate and enjoy the journey, I will be blessed in many ways.

(PS: Next time, we’re going to look for the other windmill in the park. And we’ve already decided: We’ll DRIVE to it!)