Camels in the Gulch, Sober Paul, Bowen, Bay’s Accident, The Most Powerful Virtue

“Love is the very essence of life. It is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Yet, it is not found only at the end of the rainbow. Love is at the beginning also, and from it springs the beauty that arched across the sky on a stormy day. Love is the security for which children weep, the yearning of youth, the adhesive that binds marriage, and the lubricant that prevents devastating friction in the home; it is the peace of old age, the sunlight of hope shining through death. How rich are those who enjoy it in their associations with family, friends, and neighbors! Love, like faith, is a gift of God. It is also the most enduring and most powerful virtue.”
— Gordon B. Hinckley

Happy Hump Day, there is a herd of camels that just walked through our mountain gulch.  It was an exciting sight, but now back to reality.  It’s about 6:30 a.m.; the sun is just starting to raise her little head, the temperature is pleasant, not too chilly, but not too warm.  The aspen trees have turned in the last three days; there are pockets of gold everywhere you look.

I suspect a rainbow soon to end in our beautiful community; tomorrow, I take a drive a couple of hours west and will bathe in the golden glow of this season. I had a good day yesterday; I got up and was to have breakfast with a friend who asked if we could hike instead. This is because so many of my meetings are walking meetings; instead of lunch, coffee, or cocktails, people like to take a hike.

I was up early, made some soup, and then got in our new hot tub for the first time. It’s got a cup holder and a cooler for drinks; I sat with my coffee and watched the steam surround me as I looked over the city of Denver. Then, I took a quick shower and headed down the hill with PVHT to meet my friend Paul.  Paul owns a bookkeeping company; they provide outsourced bookkeeping for various clients in Denver; he’s built the company, a solid entrepreneur.

As we began our walk, we talked about our mornings; he has 1, 5, and ten-year-old children, he is at a different phase of life.  I shared how we spent our days, and I remember how life was with small children.  I shared our Sober October journey with him; he quit drinking when COVID hit, he and his wife are from KY, big drinkers, but with the kids, he thought it might be time to take a time out.  He lost 40 pounds and now does things like drinks, vegetables, and fruit smoothies for lunch; he’s in fantastic shape, a good example for me to follow as I reset my utilization of Devil’s nectar.

I had blocked two hours to hike and get a bite to eat; I searched for a local dog park to take PVHT to meet some other dogs, made the few-minute drive, and went to a dog park for the first time in my life.  I’ve never been to a real-life dog park; it was in Morrison, there were many dogs there, PVHT got to run and meet some friends, we left there, got some breakfast before heading back to meet my wife.

We had a couple of meetings to run from here; at 4:00, we left and headed to meet Bowen from Philly.  As per my usual approach, some Indianapolis friends referred Bowen; I did not know what Bowen did, I was there to meet him as a human.  Bowen and his wife are new here; he did what we did, he had an opportunity and took it, he came from a swanky corporate job and got a chance to join a start-up with some stock options.  They are a temp service in the bookkeeping space; I think I’ll connect him and Paul, my morning walking partner.

As we sat with Bowen, my phone went off a couple of times, I ignore my phone when engaging others, but something told me to check it.  Bailey had sent a note; she was involved in an auto accident; I jumped up from the table and called her outside.  She had been rear-ended; she was ok, maybe some whiplash; she had been headed to Keith and Kathy’s with a car full of our kid’s stuff, moving it from the condo to the mountain house.

We chatted options; I suggested we could come and get her; she was ok; she was going to UBER back to the condo, get Nate’s jeep and then continue on her way. So we got home and checked on her; she’s safe and sound; we will figure out how to deal with the stuff in the car and get Bay a rental; it’s what we local parents do.  Her mother and father are back in Indiana; we will take care of her, no different than if our kid was in a situation back in the Midwest.

Excuse me whilst I take a photo of the sunrise and get some more coffee.

I’ll share the photo; it’s breathtaking; we are fortunate and blessed, another few days in this paradise before we begin our 3-day journey back east. I am reading a collection of short stories on my Ipad by one of my favorite authors Mark Haddon; so far, we have dealt with death, rape, and morbid obesity; I can’t wait to see what he has in store for me in the following collection of words.

I’ve got an international conference today; I need to do some gardening, time to cut down our foliage and see how we did with our plants. Then, we will need to work with Bailey to ensure she gets what she needs and then retrieve our kid’s belongings from the damaged vehicle—another busy day, setting up tomorrow.  I’ve been asked to be on a morning podcast, and then I head to my annual men’s retreat to open my heart and learn from other leaders of men.  

I’ll return mid-Friday, catch up on some work, and then we will head to Denver to see Dave Matthews Band; I’m driving, it’s nice to have a sober being in one’s mist. Although the truth be told, the last couple of times I’ve seen Dave, I’ve been a little clouded; it will be good to see a DMB show with 100% clarity.  Saturday is our pack-up day, and then Sunday, we will begin our drive back to our Indiana home.

That’s all the words that will spring from my brain this morning.  It’s time to move on, clean up email, and set up my day for a series of small accomplishments.  I’ve learned that I can’t change the world in a day, but I can change the world by making small slight movements and choices each day so that when my time here is over, I can look back at thousands of tiny positive actions that made our world a better place.   I trust you are well; lean on something bigger than yourself if needed; they are always there, I know from experience.

“Love is the very essence of life. It is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Yet, it is not found only at the end of the rainbow. Love is at the beginning

also, and from it springs the beauty that arched across the sky on a stormy day. Love is the security for which children weep, the yearning of youth, the adhesive that binds marriage, and the lubricant that prevents devastating friction in the home; it is the peace of old age, the sunlight of hope shining through death. How rich are those who enjoy it in their associations with family, friends, and neighbors! Love, like faith, is a gift of God. It is also the most enduring and most powerful virtue.”
— Gordon B. Hinckley