Seeds & Skies

Picture your life as a seed, brimming with the potential for growth, beauty, and abundance, while the sky above signifies the limitless opportunities life has in store.

How would you cultivate a meaningful existence in harmony with your purpose?

What dreams would you nurture to manifest a fulfilling life?

Every day, I try to embrace the stoic principle of “Memento Mori,” a reminder that life is fleeting, and we could leave it at any moment. This mindset has spurred immense growth in my life and ignited an urgency to write this book for those I leave behind.

As a parent and grandparent, I understand that my children often resist unsolicited advice, even when I am genuinely trying to guide and teach them valuable lessons (no one really likes unsolicited advice, anyway). And we all learn our lessons differently. I imagine this book might be left on a shelf, but perhaps someday, when my children seek advice or simply want to know my thoughts or just hear my voice, they will recall its existence.

The wisdom within these pages stems from various sources — deep meditative thoughts, books and media, and hard-learned life lessons. I have collected these insights in bits and pieces, both digitally and in traditional journals, attempting to organize and make sense of them. Some ideas might be repetitive or not resonate with you, but I hope you can overlook these aspects and focus on what truly speaks to you, using those insights to aid you on your own journey.

This book is not intended to be an exhaustive exploration of each piece of advice. Instead, it aims to serve as a springboard to provoke thought and introspection, encouraging you to question your own beliefs and values.

It invites you to conduct your own research, forge your own path, and maybe even refer back to these ideas…as I often do with my own notes and journals. And for me, I will be referring to this book (particularly throughout the “Seeds” section), using it as a workbook to help me maintain focus and to help foster my own growth.

Life is too precious to squander in unhappiness. Devote your days to cultivating your dreams, sharing love and kindness, and improving yourself and the world around you. You possess the power and potential to become the person you were meant to be, like a mighty oak or a delicate flower reaching for the sky.

Above all, do not let anyone (including yourself) obstruct your dreams. Instead, allow the seeds of your potential to take root and embrace the vast skies of possibility that stretch out before you.

An earlier version of this book, titled, Do As I Say, Not As I Do: A Little Book about Living Well from a Dying Father, was published several years ago. However, having changed my last name and accumulated additional insights that I wanted to share, I felt the need to revise the book quite a bit.

After much contemplation, Seeds & Skies: Reflections on Living a Meaningful Life with Intention emerged as a more fitting title, reflecting the essence of this work more closely.

As I continue to learn and grow in my own life, I expect this manuscript to evolve as time goes on.

Thank you for being here.