A Year Ago Today

he says:

The great socialist republics were (in)famous for many things, but my favorite was the five year plan. The planned society, the planned economy... It implies so many things. Such that one is thinking ahead, that one can foresee the unforeseen, and that one is capable of shaping the future.

Ha. Where were you a year ago? That is the mental game I like to play. Think back to where you were a year ago, then ask yourself if you are now where you thought you’d be 365 days ago. My guess is that most of you are not doing what you thought you’d be doing, where you are doing it, with whom you suspected. Only 365 days have passed, yet life has brought an unknowable series of choices and outcomes in just one short year.

A year ago today, Elizabeth and I received a phone call from a production company in L.A. The call was shocking, and it prodded us to ask our employer for a four month leave of absence. They obliged, and we began packing and organizing and disconnecting from the civilized world for an unforgettable odyssey in the Alaskan bush. A life changing experience in so many ways.

Just 367 days ago, I never would have guessed it. One of life’s little surprises. Any sort of five year plan would have melted in the face of such radical input. Even a one year plan would have gone out the window.

So, I ask you. Where will you be in a year? What constructive changes are you willing to undertake to make it happen? And when life throws you a meatball, are you ready to forget about the conservative double you were preparing for, and to slug this pitch out of the park?

Life is about choices, big and small. The answer is that you do not know where you will be, and neither do I.

Dream big, dream small. Prepare.

Now make it happen.