Desire Paths

"When the original movement by individuals helps clear a path, thereby encouraging more travel.” (Wikipedia)

I was surveying my favorite blogs on international development today, when I came across a post from the blog, "Meaningfulness of Little Things "about the notion of Desire Paths (also known as a Desire Line or Social Trail) in reference to article found in the New York Times about building gardens in Detroit center.

These paths or shortcuts, according to Wikipedia, are formed by travelers seeking a more efficient means of movement usually in response to existing circuitous routes that waste time or impractical in connecting one directly to their destinations. Many Desire Paths evolve in time to become major routes for all to travel.

As I read more about them, in my mind, I came to realize how they poetically and simply illustrate how genius/progress can be obtained by taking just one step in a different direction.