A few nights ago I sat with a millionaire in front of a house he had built for his son, and he told me his story. He had started off milking cows decades ago, to now own one of the most well known tyre (tire) empires in Trinidad and Tobago. All the magic and mysticism of success was laid bare in what he told me- and out of all that he shared, one part of the story stands out.

He found a piece of property in a very high traffic area, but it was swampland. He spent the money and filled it up so that he could build on it - something he did with cash he had built up over the years of selling tires. He was desperate for cash, trying to leverage what he had into what he had as a goal - a large tire shop in a high traffic area that, in time, would not only pay for itself but also pay for much more. He had to sell some property he had to get some cash, and he used that to start the building. No corners were cut, and because of that the foundation was solid but the cash was low. { Read more }

Yesterday, juggling realities and schedules that are as inconsistent as the lives involved, I made it a point to get onto the land and do some spraying since we had some dry weather. The best time to spray weed killing concoctions is in the morning, but that was lost to two skipped schedules so I ended up doing it in the afternoon.

I stopped to say hi to one of my future neighbors. He told me that today was not a good day to work, that I should take the day off and rest. Rest. But I had accomplished nothing of great import last week, a victim of circumstance and - yes - schedules that I could not control and which no one else seemed interested in controlling. You waste half a day waiting on one person, half a day waiting on another, hours dealing with a drunken businessperson. Then you find yourself repeating yourself to people who, had they listened the first time instead of listening to themselves, would realize that there is nothing to talk about. The time goes in so many directions, leaving the soul seeking some accomplishment to feel the pulse of itself as it beats alone without time.

So it was important for me to accomplish something, be it something ever so simple as spraying some weedkiller to prepare for planting corn, or maintaining the trails by driving upon them, or simply being outside and thickening the callouses. And after I did my work, on the way back, my future neighbor stopped me and offered me a box of barbecue chicken, forcing me to stop and eat. { Read more }