Well it’s now actually Wednesday morning and we leave for LA later today from Orlando. I met up the Canadian boys last night (me and a couple of Americans become honorary Canadians this week). I met Don, the ringleader of this group, quite by chance a number of years ago. I was trying to escape the miserable British weather and playing some golf in Florida for a few days, with a pal from England. As we were a twosome, we were paired up with a single player who turned out to be Don. Don and I chatted all the way around the course and had a great day. The golf was secondary. After the round Don suggested we all went for a cocktail so off we went. When we were about to down art ways Don gave me his email and said “If your ever in Toronto, get in touch”
Moments like these offer choices. Do you put the card away, only to find it many years later and feel that too much time has passed to reach out? Do you throw the card away thinking I will never see this guy again? Or like me do you send an email the next day thanking him for a great day and saying you’ll keep in touch. About a year later I got an email from Don saying he was playing golf in Florida and was I around to join him and a couple of his friends. I did and again we had a great day. So it went with Don and I – a few emails, the odd round of golf and then an invitation to join him and a group of friends on their annual golf trip to Orlando. Always one to take an opportunity to play golf and have a new experience I accepted the invitation. Don is a collector of people and can talk to anyone on almost any level. So it was no surprise that his eclectic group of friends were and still are some of the best people I know. On that first trip, I can honestly say I never laughed as much since I was a kid. And I have laughed as hard every year since when I become an honorary Canadian for the week.
As a youngster someone told me life was like a journey along a road. You have choices and each choice takes you somewhere. You can start out along the road and reach a town. You might decide you love that town and settle there. However, you could also pass through and keep travelling down the road further. Ever time you come to a junction or fork in the road you have a choice to make. Turn left or turn right. Go right and keep going or decide you want to go back and go left. I am the type who never looks back from where I just came from. I look left, look right, pick the direction that looks the most fun and exciting and off I go. In hindsight, I know that this has always been the right way for me. I could never have imagined how many great people I have met, and the great places I have been and seen since simply by wandering through life. It is funny how one email address and random encounter can lead to so many wonderful times with a great group of people.
If you have seen any of the Hobbit films, I am a bit like Bilbo or Frodo. I’m never a hero or a leader, but just the guy who tags along on a big adventure. We leave for LA this afternoon for my next big adventure. It is sure to introduce me to new people, varied experiences and many stories as I cross a continent with a group of strangers, who I’m sure will be great friends by the time we get to Boston!