And now, it's here for me. What's my reflection?
I've eaten caviar in a foreign ministry and searched for a mysterious Bao Bao tree on the African Savannah. I've served meals hanging out in a homeless center and BBQ'd for 600 to support a friend on his cancer journey. I've been to a wet market in China and been offered drugs on the streets of Jamaica. I've wandered the ancient Sikh in Amman and gotten lost in the Scottish Highlands. Played with cutting edge robotics and seen the Dead Sea scrolls. Done scavenger hunts in San Juan and Frisco, and trespassed on a military base to float the Salinas. I've seen James Taylor in every decade and a salon quartet in Vienna. Walked the Silk Road in the Caucasus and topped a dozen 14'rs in Colorado.
And... it's not the places. It's the people.
Family. Rec Lab. The Y. YPO. My Colorado and Palm Springs Tribes. Partners. Neighbors. Lifelong friends. Even when on the road alone, it's always the people who are most memorable. The Muslim shop owner in Jerusalem sitting down for a coffee and sharing his story. The guy in Revelstoke jumping on his mountain bike to ride his favorite trail together. The fellow surf hosteller in Eraceira and the AirBnB host in Belfast. The couple from Melbourne learning Italian in Taormina and the owner of the French Winery passing through the desert on New Years. The Sicilian Gang in Sciacca and the Villa Roca crew in Costa Rica.
It's always about the people.
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm 64? The evidence says, yes! And I love you all.
Coming up... By the end of the year, an ending to all of my current work and then an intentional gap year to see what kind of good trouble gets stirred up for 65 and beyond. It's going to be fun.
Onward!
V
