The Wonder's Pace

Sitting in my backyard located miles away from anything I’m somewhat familiar with, I realize something simple about myself and my preferences - I’m no fan of concrete. Santiago and its 7 million inhabitants have inadvertently eroded my sense of expression and freedom while simultaneously urging me to experience and explore like never before. Here in this concrete jungle thoughts flow as though a dam were placed at the headwaters of my consciousness.  One thought squeezes through like a lone salmon returning from the ocean to swim its way upstream - flopping up and over the various obstructions in its path. What brought me to the other side of the globe?

Just as soon as the question appeared, it vanished as I found myself now considering why the Earth had begun to shake under my feet. Seconds later I hear a Chilean friend of mine exclaim, “¡Terremoto!”. I suddenly felt the proverbial dam come crashing down as thoughts began to fill my brow. One important question remained after the initial over-flow of thoughts had settled, “Do I stay, or do I go?” A question I found myself asking months before I decided to leave home; a place where I had spent every winter exploring and every summer enjoying. A place known to me as the best comfort zone a guy could ask for. The question has very real significance for anyone contemplating the road ahead and can often be debilitating as inaction is often the preferred choice. As soon as the 6.4 magnitude earthquake ceased I reached a moment of clarity, understanding the answer to the question posed seconds ago. Your only option is to go forward.

Go find those colors in the sky when the sun sets over a foreign landscape. Go discover the diversity of a new home complete with unusual accents and art meant to bend the mind. Go tap into the nature that has fueled your self-growth since before the land with time. Go challenge yourself to never stop learning and move forward with progress in the heart and mind.