High Road, Low Road - which way to go?

by Tohan Omorodion

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"The high road ends to honor and respect. The low road leads to disgrace. Wait, breathe, choose the right path" unknown. That’s what I got today in a text from my friend Maricela (by the way, this girl is a power house and she rocks). We share some really deep quotes from time to time and we talk all the time. This quote today particularly spoke to me... and here are my thoughts...

The High Road?

What the heck is the high road anyway? I guess for most it’s turning the other side or walking away from problems instead of fighting back. Now, it could also mean being a coward. Yeah really though... My thing is does this really bring any form of honor? Imagine getting in a fight with someone and they beat the shit out of you and you decide to walk away with a busted lip and a concussion without even scratching their skin. Well, that, my friend is the ultimate high road.  Now, basically what that mean is that the highroad leaves you with stitches on a busted lip and a $700 emergency room bill? Have you ever noticed in Houston or other large cities that the tolls are always on the high roads and bridges??

The Low Road?
Really? I guess these are toll free roads, who doesn’t like free? Where if someone slaps you in the face you give them a free punch in the gut. Next time they look at you, they fear to mess with you because they don’t know what to expect. That’s one definition of the low road. Or for some it could mean seeking revenge at all cost. Now that could be very dangerous because often a times, the act of revenge take a toll on the person actually seeking revenge so it sort of ends up not being toll free. I dated a guy one time who spent a lot of our time changing his profile pictures to that of us all in effort to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. That was a bit too low of a road for me… more like the valley road. With revenge, you have to plan it, perfect the plan, and execute it and monitor it. While you are busy doing all of that the other person has probably traveled to Paris and back and now is half way across the world from you starring at the moon on a yacht in Tahiti. Hmm well good luck with that.

Here’s my position.

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I think sometimes it’s important to take the high road when you are running late for work and other times it’s just best to stay on the low roads and pay no toll.  But, the road you decide to take has to be befitting to the given situation. I will never advocate for anyone to tolerate abuse in the name of taking the highroad. When you stand up for yourself it empowers you and makes the oppressor a little more mindful. However, there are some situations that are just best left alone, really. Especially if it’s going to take out of your valuable time trying to rationalize the problem to an irrational person. In that case please take the high road.
But I’ll tell you that sometimes the low roads are definitely necessary. I’ve taken that road and ruffled a feather or two a few times before, at that time it was important to get down low and dirty to defend myself at that moment but anything more than 5 mins of unproductive behavior is actually a waste of time for me. So that road was nice and short and I switched lanes to the high road.
 
Revenge isn’t the ultimate solution for everything, sometime you just have to move on with your life and let the universe do its thing.

Pause, Breathe, Think, Choose

Choosing what road to take depends on your situation, it’s usually not an easy choice to make, so take your time to pause, breathe, think and choose? The high road, low road, steep road, squiggly road? Whose to judge? Just make sure at the end of it all you don’t lose yourself. But if time is of as much value to you as it is to me, then you might find yourself taking the high road and driving 70 mph more times than not. Sometimes this might take a toll on you, but when you have a goal to reach, it can be so worth it. Plus, there’s a whole lot less traffic up there anyway, so you get to your destination faster more often times than not ;)