The Future
Lowell Sheppard • October 3, 2019
A bit of a ramble
I am getting older. We all are. Time, relentlessly moves on and the future is always at hand.
But, maybe I am different from you. You see, while some dread getting older, I look forward to the future. Yes, I know that some will think, scornfully, that I should live in the moment. But, you see, I do! With an eye on the future, I gain a sensitivity and appreciation of the fleeting moments that we live through.
Which raises another point. You cannot live in the moment because moments are transitory. Time is moving relentlessly on and taking us with it. But, I digress.
It's about the future you see. Seeing the distant horizon and all of its promise of discovery and enlightenment.
But, it is more than wonderment that one senses when contemplating what is to come. I also feel a certain guardianship of the time yet to be given to me.
The first writer to influence my thinking about the future was Alvin Toffler in his book Future Shock. I still often reflect on his use of the Barbie Doll
as an illustration of how the coming of the future is speeding up and how we must all learn to accommodate and embrace change. The most recent book to cause me to ponder the future is, The Hundred Year Life
written by Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott. They propose that that we should not
view our longer lives as being older longer
but, rather younger longer. I find this exceedingly helpful.
But, of more profound influence on me is the notion that my grandson is likely to live well past 100. It is this notion that gives me a great sense of responsibility to him and everyone in the 22nd Century.
So, what does all this have to do with Pacific Solo? I am not entirely sure I can articulate it at present except to say there are things I want to do and a legacy to leave behind, and going on a solo voyage to the middle of the North Pacific is more than just an item on my bucket list, but rather a quest for discovery and enlightenment.
