A man reflects on meeting a homeless woman while walking La Jolla Shores at night, after a day of high-stakes work calls and brand strategy. The encounter made him reconsider what matters: he argues that faith in God, not professional success or self-improvement, should be the foundation for identity and purpose.
Good morning. I am spending my last morning in La Jolla walking down the beautiful La Jolla Shores. I think that's the name of this beach. Anyway, it's really pretty. I'll give you a little quick view. Got the girls playing in the surf. Surfers and paddleboards out there. I'll give you one gratuitous shot. Ta-da! That's all you get. So, you know, what I was thinking about this morning as I woke up, first thing I had to do was a conference call with a client on the East Coast, and that took about an hour and a half, and then I went and worked out. And you know, the thing that has been going through my head since I woke up this morning. Last night, I spent all day yesterday with a client and we spent the whole day brainstorming and strategizing on a big project for a very well-known brand, like 49 years in business, this company. Big, big company, big project, very excited about it. Last night we all went out to dinner and one of, one of the ladies that we were who's on the team, amazing design wizard named Kristen, this girl came up to her and said, "Are you gonna eat your leftovers?" She was carrying a little doggie bag and she said, "No, no, you can have them." And as we continued to walk, Kristen told me that she had ran into this girl outside on the curb earlier and the girl had kind of told her her life story. Well, anyway, So after I said my goodbyes to everyone, I came for a walk on the beach last night in the moonlight. Walking back to my hotel, guess who I run into? This girl, and she's like foraging through the trash cans. So, you know, I said, are you gonna be hanging out here for a little while? She's like, yeah. And of course, at first she seemed a little bit apprehensive. I'm sure that just about every man that has ever talked to her— she's actually, she was a very pretty lady, quite tall, but she couldn't have been more than 30. I'm sure that every man that's talked to her has tried to take advantage of her at some level. So I just asked her what her needs were and blah blah blah, ran back to my room, got the cash that I had, grabbed snack bars, the protein bars and stuff that I had, and came back and I, and I gave it to her. And, you know, I wish that I could have done more, but I just thought about her and all of the homeless people that I've seen out here in San Diego in just the 3 days that I've been here. And man, It made me so grateful, you know, because there's absolutely, you know, but for the grace of God go I. Really, that's what it comes down to. It's like I'm out here strategizing and working with people on these, you know, what could be a huge project, and there's other humans who are foraging through trash cans and sleeping in the beach park behind bushes. What's my message? Man, if you have a place to sleep and food in your belly and a way to earn a little bit of income, count your blessings. Now I'm not saying that you shouldn't try to achieve more. Personal improvement, accomplishments, all those things are important. I don't believe in resting on our laurels. I think good is the enemy of great. But I also don't believe that life is all about just making more money, achieving more success, you know. One of the things I did share with this woman was the love of God. You know, that she has a Savior. She has— this is not the end for her. There is hope. And I don't think that without that spiritual component, anything else I'm doing in my life would matter. So again, I really don't know what my message is. I suppose it's be grateful, continue to strive, but don't focus on things that don't matter. And your connection with your Creator and your journey to discover the truth about that Creator, the existence of that Creator, is more important than anything else you're going to accomplish, in my judgment. Because that identity, within that identity lies the motivation to love and change the world. So maybe that's my message. Find the right foundation on which to stand so that you can love and change the world. And that starts with knowing that you're loved. And loving the one that first chose to love you. All right, so one last shot of the shore, and I bid you fond adieu.
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Day 73: Father’s Day Reflections: Legacy, Presence, and the Power of Slowing Down
