- Thomas Keller, Chef & Restaurateur, The French Laundry
(from NY Times article ‘What The Last Meal Taught Him’)
When reading this wonderful article, I was struck by how often it is later in our lives, or after we have achieved certain things, we begin to take stock and sense that there might be more to life, and that maybe we have more to give. Or perhaps it’s that we have different things we can give – that our full potential is not yet being tapped. Our sense of what is truly important begins to be stretched and shifted into new arenas. Often times it doesn’t come until after some shock, or outside disturbance that ‘wakes us up’ and allows us to look at the larger world in which we live and work. We find ourselves at a crossroads that calls us to step back and reflect on what we want to be and create next in our lives. For me, these times have been both rich and challenging. They almost always lead to some significant change.
What precipitates this ‘wake up’? Does it have to come from the outside? Maybe it’s a combination of inner readiness/curiosity and outer circumstances? What is the message/opportunity? How do I respond?
How do YOU respond to these opportunities to "wake up" in your own life?
