Reflections On A Cold Windy Afternoon
The wind cuts like a knife. It is too cold to be outside. Living right on the Hudson River means even colder and windier conditions. The sky is a pale blue with a few white clouds. The sun shines brightly but it is still frigid. I have completed teaching one course and am beginning to think about Thanksgiving and then travelling to Asheville, NC, to spend winter near the grandkids. I still have papers to grade and another course to complete.
My travels to Nairobi have shifted to January. My mind drifts into the near future in Asheville and Nairobi even though I am still here in New York. How bad will the winter be? I’ve heard predictions of a lot of snow. How much have the grandkids grown? It will be delightful to be with them again. Will Nairobi be safe? It will be great to do some work there for the UN. How will the jet lag be this time? In March I'm looking forward to returning to Oklahoma my home state to speak at a peace symposium and then to teaching in Aruba.
In eight months I turn 70, the new 50. But it is still 70, seven decades on our beautiful planet Earth. What a journey. What a blessing. What is there still to do and be and know? After four and a half decades of doing international development in 55 countries, what is now being asked of me? I still have energy and passion. I still want to serve.
I want to continue my teaching and consulting, my writing and speaking - but for how long, until I am 80 or 90? Do I have ten years or 20, or less or more? What would be the greatest contribution I could make? Should I publish my memoir now? Should I write a book on A Compassionate Civilization? Should I assist 350.org in mitigating climate chaos? Where am I being called to grow and stretch?
At the same time I want to spend more time with my grandkids and with my wife and sons and brother. I want to have more time to read and reflect. I want to get more rest and exercise. I want to eat a healthy diet. I want to be in good shape until I leave this identity. And until then I want to focus my energies on catalyzing a hoped for future of sustainable human development. I want to dream about the evolution of conscious, compassionate life over the next 1,000, one million, one billion years.
I am so grateful for having a life, for being a human being, for waking up again and again to the wonder of being alive in this mysterious cosmos. A gift unasked for and undeserved and it is mine and yours. This is our moment. Let’s use it wisely.