Dead End

So today I was furiously researching something, trying to show a connection, to prove an allegory. I looked all around, trying to find the earliest source of a tale that would solidify my case. And then... I found it! There it was. The theme was there. I would show the connection. My paper was going swimmingly.

And then.

I realized that the two tales I was trying to connect were from opposite sides of a continent, in different languages, hundreds of years apart.

My connection was exploded.

But.

My time was not wasted. In fact, I probably learned more in my "dead end" research than I would have in five lectures. My point is, even dead ends have purposes. Just because you run into a wall of bricks doesn't mean you've failed; in fact, you've made great progress, because not only will you not go down into that pointless pit again, but your experience will save others from frustration and regret.

There is no failure in missing the mark, but only in never aiming.