On August 12th Rhonda and I arose at 3 a.m. in our home in Moab to begin an extended camping trip to Bryce Canyon National Park. Our journey to Bryce would take us through Capitol Reef National Park and a section of Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument. Coincidentally, the predawn hours of August 12th were also the peak of the Perseid Meteor Shower, one of the most spectacular meteor showers of the year.

After leaving Moab in the dead of night, we found ourselves out near a remote section of the San Rafael Swell, in central Utah, during the peak of the meteor display. We parked for a while and immersed ourselves in the velvety blackness of the warm desert night. A star laden canopy of the pristine desert sky arched high overhead as meteors streamed down from the zenith. It was incredible. As dawn approached a scarlet sliver of light on the eastern horizon slowly expanded into a spectrum of warm early morning light. We continued our journey and reached Capitol Reef National Park just as the light of dawn was starting to touch the tops of the monolithic sandstone formations. It was pure magic and we were right in the middle of it. Surprisingly, the majority of our trip hadn’t even started yet! We awoke before dawn the following morning in Bryce Canyon and took all of the photos you see on this page. Our little trip turned into one of those outstanding adventures that make life a truly grand experience.

We seem to be having a lot of those types of experiences lately.

Experiencing the grandeur of the Universe and the beauty of all that surrounds us is, to us, the very best that life has to offer. Since I put up my story about Rhonda’s near-death experience, and our “living with no regrets” philosophy, I have received quite a few wonderful emails from people who said that it had influenced them in making a positive change in their own lives. I cannot begin to express how happy that has made both of us feel! It’s been well over 2 years since Rhonda’s experience and our basic philosophy hasn’t changed a bit. In fact, our perspective has made living a happy life seem incredibly easy.

The way I see it, the first step to living a fulfilling life is to simply ask yourself what you want out of life, and then actually do it. That’s all there is to it. The hardest part of the whole process is separating your dreams from society’s expectations. That's actually a lot harder than it sounds. Is your dream really a flashy car, a large house in a posh area of town, and a six-figure income? When you have those possessions do you need more? If nobody else ever noticed your possessions, would they be as fun to have? Is surrounding yourself with a cocoon of empty possessions worth missing the larger meaning of life? Don't be totally governed by such lower needs as security and acceptance, measuring others only by their usefulness, mistaking wealth and power for ends in themselves. Comfort in the protective cocoon of modern society results in little being truly seen or known. A fear of the unknown, of facing internal uncertainty or losing external control, can bring an unhealthy compulsion toward order and predictability. Anxiety kills curiosity and the urge to see beyond the self. The buffering ego can protect from traumatization, but also from creativity and discovery. Without a source of meaning larger than the ego or beyond mere survival, one is left with a universe devoid of wonder.

For me personally, I love nature and the great outdoors. I love being surrounded by the grandeur and beauty of the natural world. I love to hike and explore new places. I love photographing and sharing the beauty of our world with others. I love the Red Rock Country of southern Utah. I love sharing time with friends and family. And perhaps more than anything, I love sharing it all with Rhonda.

When we moved to Moab many of the people that we knew thought we were totally crazy. We moved to Moab from a Colorado community where the average house was selling for well over $200,000. Frankly, Moab is a rather small, dumpy town with no real status appeal. It’s located “in the middle of nowhere” and the wages are probably amongst the lowest in the nation. But, if you’ve read anything on my website it’s quite clear that this is where I want to be. This is where I need to be. This is the place that I love! Moving here has changed my boring existence into a real passion for life. Moving here has made life worth living, and isn’t that what our existence is all about?

I am more convinced than ever that anyone can make a major life change at any point in his or her life. We hesitate because we simply fear the unknown, or fear taking a risk. But guess what? If you or a loved one are involved in a serious accident, or have a serious medical condition develop today, your life will be totally changed tomorrow. You will finally be making a major change in your life, but it will be for all the wrong reasons. Trust me, life changed for Rhonda and I within one second when her aneurysm bled within her brain. Within 24 hours I was presented with the very real possibility that Rhonda may never be able to work again, may need extensive in-home care, and would possibly never be able to even stay in the Red Rock Country that we both loved so much. I was fully prepared to make any change necessary for Rhonda. It is part of the commitment that we have made to each other. It promised to be a major, yet truly disastrous, life change. But we lucked out. The odds were totally against us, but we totally lucked out. Rhonda’s recovery was remarkable and we were given a second chance. I will never forget how lucky we were, and I will never hesitate another day to do something that we both really want.

I’ve seen so many unhappy people with plans for major life changes, yet they hesitate to take the plunge. If misfortune can make you immediately change your life plans, why not make a change in your life for positive reasons while you are still in total control?

The odds are, you will only live once. If you don’t do what makes you happy in this lifetime, you may never get another chance.

Live your life to the fullest. Start today.