Slowly but surely

I was stumbling along in the dark when I almost stepped on it--the largest snail i've ever seen in my life. There, crawling slowly across the sidewalk at the university, was a huge snail about five inches long. He looked like a pickle spear, with a giant brown shell on his back, and his one-inch long horns were busy trying to find his way along. I couldn't believe my eyes. I couldn't believe our luck--I could so easily have crushed him. He was trying to make his way from the grass on one side of the sidewalk to the grass on the other side, and he was about halfway across the 8-foot wide concrete. So I decided somebody needed to be his crossing guard, lest somebody blunder along and squish him. Wow. It took him forever to cross that sidewalk. Several people passed by now and then, wondering why in the hell I was crouched down on the sidewalk, mesmerized by a stupid snail. But I was determined to shepherd him to the nice wet grass on the other side. Well, I obviously need a hobby.
Anyway, the point is, I was watching this little guy, cheering him on, and i wondered, "How does he know where he's going? I mean, does he know there's a nice green oasis on the other side of this desert, or does he just start moving and find out where he's going when he gets there?"

Well, i watched him for about 20 minutes. At one point, he came so close to the grass.....and then turned right and started going in the other direction. Damn! I guess you can have your plan for what's going to happen in life, but things are going to go their own way. Eventually he made his way into the grass and I let him be. So, as you're reading this, give a thought to the snail...inching its way through the night slowly but surely, with nothing but his home on his back.