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Published: October 12th 2014
Wake Up… I woke up today with the lyrics of a friend’s song playing in the back of my mind – “Wake up, let me tell you the story of the things that I’ve done…” – and realized how quickly the days and weeks are passing. It has already been
ten weeks since we left our home, though it feels like it was just days ago that we were organizing the details that would send us toward our next journey… well, here we are!
Despite the many new and exciting experiences in China, I have felt comfortable since day one. But what makes each day so powerful, is having my other half Erin with me to enjoy the adventure with.
Each day I wake up more and more grateful to be next to Erin, the one other who shares so many of the same dreams as me. Now don’t get me wrong, we are very different people, her passion being anything health related and mine being my love for business, yet it is those differences that bring so many interesting dimensions to our conversations and ways of being. One cannot argue that it is our differences that allow
each other to grow and see things from new and varying perspectives. Needless to say, I am often lectured about the moral and ethical implications of the latest companies I am buying, but in response, I try to balance the equation by reminding Erin of the harsh realities that dictate so much of the social, economic and political spectrum that have become so ingrained in our day-to-day actions. Combined, we balance and complement each other, creating a team strong in mind, body and spirit.
Then there are those moments when I wander the streets on my own and I think about how different it would be if I did not have the opportunity to go home and share my finds with Erin. It would be like writing an epic story without a final chapter, taking a perfect photo and never being able to develop it, or finding a hundred dollars and being unable to invest it. In short, the adventures would not seem as valuable and they would miss the lustre that I feel when I run home to tell Erin would I saw or did or learned.
I spent many years on my own, and to be
honest, I was quite okay with it, but there is great value in sharing life with another. As Donne suggests, ‘No man is an island entire of itself’, and despite my reclusive spirit, there are many aspects of life that should be enjoyed with others. Creations should be shared, stories retold, moments remembered. It is in time that these memories take on lives of their own, their shared experiences embellished and rekindled, like a bridge between distant times, always reminding us where we came from and how we got there.
Life with Erin is never dull to say the least, and I am never sure what new crusade each day will bring, but what I can always be certain of, is that when we look at each other, there is an understanding so deep that we are instantly reminded of how fortunate we are to share in such adventures together. And let me tell you, not a day passes when our dreams do not grow and we begin searching into new ventures that will allow us to live freely and comfortably.
As time moves forward, we have envisioned our lives including everything from ranches in Texas or Hawaii
to hotels in Bali and eco-resorts in Costa Rica, all of which are or have been at varying degrees in the works. Every day we look at life as a canvas of infinite possibilities, limited only by what we are willing to do to make it happen.
Being the business side of the team, I find great satisfaction in taking an idea, researching its potential and building an opportunity that meets our criteria. And what is our criterion? In short, a winning opportunity must allow us the freedom to never feel that we are tied indefinitely to one place, it must offer a healthy environment with a hot climate, it must have the ability to generate an income sufficient to maintaining the investment and the life we want to live, and most importantly, it must allow us to each do the things we are passionate about doing while never being far apart. Taking this approach to our decisions enables us choose wisely in order to live where we want, do what we want and still know that we can live a certain lifestyle while still continuing to grow financially.
Up to this point Erin and I have independently – and now together – written an interesting story of what our lives have been. This, however, is just the beginning! As each new day comes, I will continue to wake up feeling so fortunate to be next to Erin, knowing that while we are living our lives according to our ways, the next adventure is always on the horizon… but for now, those stories are still in the making!
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Where Did the Real Go
Sean and Erin Douglas
xoxoxoxo....this is what you were so secretly writing today and I kept disturbing you! I feel just as lucky to be cruising around causing trouble with you. Love you!!!!