Cleveland Thanksgiving

Back in Cleveland now, to attend what now seems to be an annual tradition: spending Thanksgiving with family and family friends:



Everyone of course has grown up, but it just makes for more interesting conversation to catch up on all the wonderful variety of endeavors everyone is into these days.

As for myself, I'm planning to be back home for anywhere from 1-3 months to tackle my long list of "Things To Do If I Ever Quit My Job." Specifically, the goals for this period is to:

1. Strengthen family unity & communication
2. Do some personal reflection and examine options & ideas to figure out next steps
3. Complete one-time cleanup and sortation of old personal items (paper/electronic docs, print & digital photos, etc)
4. Create a system to better manage items in the future (systematic cataloguing/sortation, improved accessibility, systematic backup)
5. Complete various old projects (HK the Hard Way, Thanksgiving Project, BOM)
6. Develop better skills and habits (intense exercise, cooking, cleaning, piano playing & improvisation, musical composition, etc)

It is unclear how much time I will need, and it is possible I may have bitten off more than I could chew. In any case, subjectively speaking, it is clear this is something I have been meaning to do, regardless of actual objective value. It's not too often you have time to rebuild your foundations.

Learning Peace

Many people, when faced with having no plans or schedules, having nothing compelling them to do this or that, start to worry or get antsy. To a large extent, I am no different. Coming from a background where achievement is often expected, and having heard occasionally from friends and family that so-and-so is doing this or that, that they've already accomplished such and such, it feels slightly troubling to continue sailing onwards into the vast unknown. Without a sure direction and facing the wide expanse of possibilities, staring into the face of life's long road ahead, I find myself contemplating the prospect of working again more often than I would have hoped, and thus sometimes disrupting my ability to fully enjoy my journey.

But it is also because of this that I must persist. For it is when I am finally able to rid myself of the anxiety of doing "nothing" useful, I will find some measure of peace with myself independent of what I do. Only then will I be ready to come back. This goal - learning to be at peace - is reason enough in of itself to continue on.

Hessian Dream

A few months earlier, one of my friends had recommended a book for me to read once he heard of my plan. It's called Knulp, by Herman Hesse, and the subject is one that is perhaps fairly common in many of Herman Hesse's works.

The story is that of a man who is a wanderer and goes from village to village, relying on nothing but himself and the kindness of friends and strangers. He is well-educated, well-versed in the details of various trades, and adept at many sociable talents such as singing or whistling folk tunes, storytelling, and dancing. Everyone knows of him and delights to be in his presence; his friends are honored to house him for the night and to share their meals. He is well-mannered in the social graces of the time, is neat and orderly, and is self-sufficient in the personal maintenance of his few belongings. All who meet him find him to be a likeable character, like a spot of sunshine of freedom amongst the general dreariness of a rainy day.

To simplify things, Knulp is what I am not. He epitomizes all that I have not been, and all that I seek to become via this journey. One of my goals is to pursue my Hessian Dream: To wander around aimlessly without anxiety, to meet and befriend strangers with ease and harmony, and to be well-versed enough in the talents that act as social lubricants such as song and story to brighten someone else's day. It means I consciously take time to observe and improve upon other areas of my life that are not typically my focus, to start new habits, and increase my comfort zone.

And this tale of Knulp, regardless of the merits of the story, provides me with a roadmap.

Plan

To start off, the purpose of this blog is for me to chronicle my travels and any noteworthy adventures as I leave my job to explore the world.

The essence of my plan is to have no plan. However, I do have a tentative schedule for the first couple of months. Given my flight schedule, my itinerary currently looks like the following:

Present - 6/23: In New York. Last Day at work is 6/20.
6/23 - 7/14: In Taiwan. Short-term missions trip to help support the churches in Taiwan.
7/14 - Early August: In New York. Sleeping. Organizing. Sightseeing. Available.
Early August - 8/14-ish: In Cleveland. Seeing family.
8/14 - ??: In China. In Beijing for the Olympics. May drop by Shanghai shortly afterwards.

No plans for China other than to try to attend the Olympics thus far. Suggestions? Maybe I can visit your village...