Travel Notes and Observations

I am finally ensconced in Southern California for a few weeks and can report the winter jacket is hanging in the closet and the golf shirts are ready for periodic use.

At the risk of rubbing it in for my Northeast friends, today was 77º and sunny. It is actually the first real warm and sunny day since my travels began at the end of January.

I am feeling a little more than my age these days because of my proximity to the graying humanity in this community. I am staying at a very nice gated golf community and my observation so far has seen very few young folks, in fact, I haven’t seen any, which inspires me to think about age and aging.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote:

"For Age is an oppportunity no less

than youth itself, though in another dress.

And as the evening twilight fades away

The sky is fitted with stars, invisible by day."

And the Dalai Lama had some wise words for those of us who are getting on. He wrote:

“While we exist as human beings,

we are like tourists on holiday. If we play

havoc and cause disturbance our visit is

meaningless. If during our short stay -100

years at most-we live peacefully, help others

and, at the very least, refrain from harming or

upsetting them, our visit is worthwhile. What

is important is to see how we can best lead a

meaningful life, how we can bring about peace

and harmony in our minds, how we can help

contribute to society.”

I trust your day and days are perfect and happy and that the seeming passage of time is an illusion.