Path of Dreams

I nenver will forget those nights
I wonder if it was a dream
Remember how you made me crazy
Remember how I made you scream
--Don Henley

After graduating from college I moved to Wisconsin. Lived there for a dozen years. I left in 1995 to return to grad school. Now I try to make it back every year or so to visit old friends.

And to remember.

Those years in Wisconsin were instrumental in shaping who I am today. Moving away from home and beginning a career in an unknown place (scary for me). Forming new and lasting friendships. Learning how businesses and industries operate. Being part of an organization that was making something tangible that people valued. Making a difference.

While it was all very satisfying, I found myself almost perpetually restless. Few days went by where I wasn't dreaming about the future--one that was not in Wisconsin. A future that found me in an urban environment, more connected to family, and doing something even more meaningful from a career standpoint.

This was saying something, because by the early 90s I was working my dream job--an executive position that I originally hoped to achieve by the time I retired. I had the good fortune of attaining it by the time I was thirty one. My career prospects with the company were never brighter.

Ironically, it was during this period that my restlessness hit a crescendo. That little voice inside my head was getting loud. It was telling me that I had to leave, and that the time to do it was when things were hitting on all cylinders.

One thing that helped me cope during this confusing time was walking. Stevens Point has a fine park alongside the Wisconsin River with a walking path that stretches for a couple of miles. I walked this path a lot (the pix scattered throughout this post were taken from this path).

There is a particular spot at the end of the path that looks west over the river. I gazed out over the horizon many times at this spot, pondering the future and how to make it happen. It became a quasi spiritual place for me, I suppose.

In retrospect, the changes that followed seem almost 'obvious.' My time in Wisconsin can be seen as 'training' for what I do today. Moreover, it turned out that I was very fortunate to leave when I did. Not long after I left, industry conditions took a drastic turn for the worse and have been spiraling downward since.

So when I come up to visit, I renew old friendships. And I walk the river, reflecting on the path to my good fortune.