On a personal level, I still think as optimistically as I did when I was 25, but a glance in the mirror quickly reminds me that those days are long behind me. But the inevitable deterioration of my body has given way to an urgency to set a course for a legacy that lives beyond me. For my Dad, it was joining a group called “Beyond War” when he was 80. For me it’s setting an example of perseverance when facing the brevity of life. No matter the age, each of us can encourage and inspire others to pick up the gauntlet of change that will enable a new generation to reach for the stars with a simple act of focused giving.
This simple anniversary goal is an effort to apply what I’ve learned over 7 decades of trial and error; a lot more error that I’d like to admit, or even remember. For success, in anything, is a journey of uncounted missteps. As Robert Frost’s Iconic poem “The Road Not Taken,” explains the path we choose sets a course for the out-come. That path is unique to each of us, fraught with challenges and failures, but always about expressing the best within us; serving others with a set of talents, skills and abilities that are as different from everyone else as our fingerprints.
For me, here and now, this milestone, is a personal effort to demonstrate that one person acting in faith can change the course of a family, neighborhood and community. Specifically, here and now, it’s to do something to unite people behind the transformation of San Bernardino. You can join me in this effort in several different ways. It’s a long ride, and it would be energizing to have members of the community ride along on this bike tour of San Bernardino. As you ride, run or walk, perhaps family and friends would support your effort with a per mile donation.
Realistically, I may never know the impact my chosen path made on the people, the city, or those in the world around me. What I do know is the unconditional love shown to me by family, friends and good-hearted people I’ve never met. This act compels me to return that love to a world desperately seeking it.
And that, as Frost reminds me, “has made all the difference.”
- Ray Anderson
This simple anniversary goal is an effort to apply what I’ve learned over 7 decades of trial and error; a lot more error that I’d like to admit, or even remember. For success, in anything, is a journey of uncounted missteps. As Robert Frost’s Iconic poem “The Road Not Taken,” explains the path we choose sets a course for the out-come. That path is unique to each of us, fraught with challenges and failures, but always about expressing the best within us; serving others with a set of talents, skills and abilities that are as different from everyone else as our fingerprints.
For me, here and now, this milestone, is a personal effort to demonstrate that one person acting in faith can change the course of a family, neighborhood and community. Specifically, here and now, it’s to do something to unite people behind the transformation of San Bernardino. You can join me in this effort in several different ways. It’s a long ride, and it would be energizing to have members of the community ride along on this bike tour of San Bernardino. As you ride, run or walk, perhaps family and friends would support your effort with a per mile donation.
Realistically, I may never know the impact my chosen path made on the people, the city, or those in the world around me. What I do know is the unconditional love shown to me by family, friends and good-hearted people I’ve never met. This act compels me to return that love to a world desperately seeking it.
And that, as Frost reminds me, “has made all the difference.”
- Ray Anderson