What inspires you to stay strong in mind, body, and spirit?

Oct 8

We had barely returned from Europe to our lovely home in Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, when we found ourselves watching the path of Hurricane Polo, a Category 5 storm with winds exceeding 160 mph.

This wasn’t our first hurricane. But watching a storm grow that powerful puts everything else into perspective.

September is peak hurricane season here in Baja. Many businesses close, and people leave for a while.

We were settling back in: unpacking, airing out the house, restocking, managing jet lag and reverse culture shock, while adjusting to the heat & humidity.

Then preparing for a major hurricane moved to the top of the list.

Twelve years ago, Hurricane Odile caused enormous damage across Baja California Sur, including Todos Santos. Homes, roads, and power lines were devastated. For many, the disruption lasted weeks.

Experiences like that stay with you and many people still have PTSD from their ordeal. They remind you that what you expect and what actually happens can be very different.

And somewhere in the back of my mind, my old Boy Scout motto was speaking up: Be prepared.

I’m a “prepare for the worst and hope for the best” kind of human. I also believe that having options is one of life’s greatest luxuries.

So we got stuck into the essentials: water, food, fuel, batteries, candles, and cash. For the first time, we rented a generator.

We filled the bathtub with water and froze bottles to help keep food cold in an Igloo cooler if the power went out.

Simple things. Practical things. Things you’re grateful you did before you needed them.

As we prepared, I started thinking beyond the hurricane.

How much of that same care do we put into our health, our businesses, and our future? How often do we look beyond our immediate needs and consider what will help us and the people we love years from now?

Preparing takes effort today. But it can give us more choices tomorrow.

That question feels particularly relevant when I think about getting older.

Am I making choices now that will serve me in twenty years?

Am I looking after my physical and mental health? Building strength? Giving myself time to recover? Staying connected to the people and experiences that lift my spirit?

Strength can sound like an abstract goal until you think about what it allows you to do like get out of a chair, climb stairs, carry groceries, or pick up your child.

Maintaining muscle, bone health, and balance helps preserve those everyday freedoms. It’s easy to take them for granted while we have them.

I became a father for the first time at 50. If all goes well, I’ll be 71 when my son is old enough to legally order a drink in the United States.

That thought brings the future into focus.

I want to be there, with the energy and strength to share adventures, explore new places, and enjoy ordinary days together.

He is a huge part of my inspiration. Many of the choices I make today are small investments in that future.

Thankfully, Polo passed without major consequences for us in Todos Santos. Other communities weren’t as fortunate.

Then Rachel gave us another reason to keep an eye on the Pacific.

Our supplies stayed stocked and our equipment stayed ready. The effort we had already made carried forward.

There’s something in that.

The strength we build, the habits we practise, and the relationships we nurture can support us through more than the challenge immediately in front of us.