What's with the title?

In April of 2011, I read an blog post by Peter Wood in The Chronicle of Higher Education Innovations blog in which he drew some parallels between a current independent movie and a leadership style seemingly prevalent in Higher Education. I saved a copy of the post since it struck a chord with me, and still occasionally reconsider it to see if it still resonates with me.

The movie he referenced was Meek’s Cutoff which tells the story of families in 1845 trying to reach the Willamette Valley in Oregon. They hire Steven Meek as their guide based on his assurances, yet he manages to bungle the job with a considerable number dying along the way. The movie shows Steven stating, “We’re not lost.  We’re just finding our way.”  That statement has stuck with me!

As I have reached this point in my life where it’s time to move from what I know to whatever comes next, the statement rings true once again, but in a totally different way. I know that I’m not lost - as a Christian I’m confident in the future. It’s just not clear at this point what occupation or specialization will command a significant portion of my waking hours. For now, I’m comfortable that we’re just finding our way.

What’s next?

At this point, I’m anticipating an initial period of travel and time with family. That may be followed by meaningful volunteerism combined with travel, or it might mean a paying job, temporary, part-, or full-time. There may be some house selling & buying, before January or after, or not...  

You’ll note that there is an unusual amount of “I” in this post. BJ is nervous, but supportive. You’ll see a lot more “we” in future posts. Meanwhile, I look forward to every day being a meaningful day.

It's time for another major change in our lives.  After 15 years maintaining airplanes and helicopters for Mission Aviation Fellowship, and over 22 years with the Community College District in Phoenix, Arizona, I've set a date to officially start my third major career.  I'm not sure what it will be, but I am sure about some of the components that will be included in anything that draws me back into a work environment.  The official last day of my second career will be January 5, 2013.

Meanwhile, we're getting the Scamp ready for some serious traveling.  In a month, we'll leave on a three week "test trip," going as far north as Glacier National Park and as far west as Yosemite National Park.

We'll use this space to track our travels and our musings, as we look for what's next.