The Pages Turn Faster

And it’s June. My aunt said something to me that my dad has repeatedly told me: “as you get older, time goes by faster and faster.” Already halfway through 2024, I feel confident that the same things matter, despite the speed of time passing. Love, health, and time itself. We all crave these three things, and are miserable when any one of them slips too far into disarray. Can we recognize that, halfway through 2024?

Swirl of Change

Life is always changing, and that’s part of what makes the ride so fun. We never know where we’ll be next week or how things might shift. I believe maintaining a North Star set of principles is a key ingredient to a life well lived, but so is the embrace of serendipity. Dr. Seuss was right: oh the places you’ll go.

And we’re all on the same journey: living as a human on this wondrous planet in the twenty first century. We journey together, whether we like it or not, whether we’re conscious of that truth or not. What kind of journey shall we share amongst the swirl of change?

Toy Story’s Story

I watched Toy Story this evening for the first time in probably two decades. Its magic still blossoms from the screen. The animation, the soundtrack, the screenplay and humor, the voice acting, they all jump off the screen to this day, almost 30 years later.

The first fully computer animated feature length film, Toy Story was successful, and still iconic today, because of its messaging. The real world can be scary. But we get through it together with friends.

It belongs on any “must watch” list for any alien visiting our planet. It represents, I believe, what can be the best of us—through its creativity and technical execution, and through its proclamation of the “human” spirit. It just happens through toys.

Remembered Like Bill

My parents met at UCLA in the 1980’s. They camped outside Pauley Pavilion to get seats for the basketball games. I was even named after forward Trevor Wilson.

So even though like most millennials I primarily knew of Bill Walton as the goofy broadcaster, I also knew of his prestige as a basketball player. Growing up my dad often implored me look up his collegiate statistics.

I was saddened to learn of Bill’s passing yesterday and immediately texted my dad. Although I never met him, I feel he had some distant impact on my life, growing up in a UCLA family, obsessed with sports.

The statements from the sports and entertainment greats are endearing. Bill Walton is talked about as selfless, generous person, who always made time for others. Countless basketball legends professed him a dominant, captivating player, but an even better person. Someone who was funny and lived life with excitement and enthusiasm.

I want to be remembered like Bill Walton. To be remembered for being great at something, but for that to pale in comparison to the impact on people’s lives. Thank you Bill for being an inspiration to me, and to so many others. I aspire to live a life well lived, so that when my time comes, I can be remembered like you.

Challenging Holidays

Memorial Day can be a complicated day. On one hand, it’s our responsibility as citizens to pay our respects to all the brave souls who gave their lives to the ideal of freedom. On the other, our country has engaged in much needless warfare, in which those soldiers needn’t have died. Our progress working through this conundrum represents one facet of the necessary reckoning we must have as a society. How shall we proceed? Perhaps we can honor this day and move forward with respect.

Comforting Connection

There is comfort in the big picture.

Because on the grandest scale, we are a part of something. Regardless what reality “is,” our consciousness is the experience of it.

We are connected to the universe, even if minuscule in scale. Our atoms and cells interact with the particles of the universe. We are one, we are all one.

And that can be a comforting thought.

Health Forgetfulness

Health is the easiest universal desire to forget.

Time and love are immediately noticeable in absence. When out of time, we wish for but just a few more moments. When alone, the ache for connection is all-consuming.

But we naturally and continuously adapt to the status quo. With health we become accustomed and indifferent; when it worsens we learn to accept and adapt to our new physical reality.

To be grateful for our current health is a strong daily practice—when it’s gone we want nothing else.

Writing Is

Writing is torture. It can drive one mad when reeling.

Writing is love. It can provide absolute clarity and purpose while in flow.

Writing is simply this: it is crucial for developing critical thinking, because it requires marshalling multiple thoughts coherently.

Maybe writing is our answer.

Finding Purpose

Finding purpose is challenging in our society—should it be?

The bottom line: we get to choose how we earn a living and who we spend our time with. Everything else.. how much money we make, who we run into and what happens to us.. seems largely circumstantial.

So we can choose. Will we be a force of good? Will we contribute to the universe? In this deepest sense, our fate is negotiable.

I’m asking for more

I’m asking for more.

We all want the same things: to spend lots of quality time with loved ones, to put food on the table for our family, to raise children, to find fulfilling work, to own a home, to have fun. Freedom, equity, and togetherness.

I believe everyone has a right to pursue these basic human desires.

But I also believe we should all do more, beyond those common goals. We can all elevate global consciousness, a true recognition of humanism beyond our smaller national, regional, communal, or familial tribes.

We can all regularly engage in civic participation, not just voting in every election but advocating for what we believe and truly self-governing.

And we can all give—to those outside our normalized group, to others without thought of reward. We can all volunteer our time or money and provide community service to make our world stronger.

This can all be achieved in mere minutes a week. Am I too demanding to ask for more?