Do certain locations in the world remind you of certain seasons of your life? So last week I had the opportunity to travel to one of the most beautiful places on earth and in my opinion the place with the friendliest mzungus too. Scotland. This was my second visit there and it felt like a personal pilgrimage. The last time I was in Scotland, home of very fine drinks for big people (adults) – as my kids would say, was in 2000. I was at some serious crossroads then. I had just left Kenya and anyone my age remembers, things were thick here back then. Kwanza we had just ponead the millennium bug. The economy was doing badly and I had just watched my business collapse. How I ended up in Scotland is another story but I came back in mid-2000 and started my tent business.
This was purely not my doing and up to this day I can’t answer logically why I started a tent hiring business and why i called it HAPPENING VENTURES. Ever heard of the story of a man walking on the beach and there are two sets of foot prints? One is his and the other is God’s, meaning God is walking with him. Then suddenly there are fierce winds and high tide sets in and the man is struggling to move on. He notices there is only one set of foot prints at this point. So he cries out to God asking why He has deserted him. Once calm returns, the guy is moody and feels let down. And the good Lord tells him, kijana, that was not your set of foot prints. It was Me carrying you through the storm. So yes I was in a serious storm 17 years ago wondering what my life was about. I was seeking my true north, of which I even have a business card. (Remember last article)
So I find myself in Scotland again 17 years later and accosted by another set of crossroads. I was hoping that this trip will be my Damascus experience season 2. How is it that I travel to the same country twice when I am at a defining moment in my life? Why Scotland? I don’t believe this is a coincidence. There is something at this particular point and place that I need to get…
This was a pilgrimage to me in two ways. Firstly, I was going back to where I begin anticipating a new true north, which I’m so excited (getting less scary pole pole) about. Secondly I got a chance to play golf at THE OLD COURSE – St Andrews Links, which to a golfer is the equivalent of Islam’s pilgrimage to mecca. Being here was nothing short of a spiritual experience. Awesome kabisa. Id post many photos but at the risk of being a bore to my non golfer readers here, ill spare us all. Besides I’ve noticed at 40 one is less social on social media, at least for most folks I’ve met. We prefer real face to face interaction.
So what is the lesson from my sojourn? Sometimes a geographical location we go to represents the end or beginning of something in our lives. It could also be a place that offers rest. And though I feel I didn’t get what I went for in Scotland, maybe what I’m looking for is not in Scotland. It just starts from Scotland. Just like how Happening ventures was born soon, I have a strong feeling that I’m about to have my set of footprints disappear soon (or maybe they already have) and I look forward to that. After all at 40 and beyond you appreciate being carried more….
Lucas, maybe I need to find my “Scotland” and go sojourn there! Thanks for sharing.
yes frank and that scotland might just be down the road to kisii land… haha
Lucas, I can attest to a geographical location representative to a beginning or an end of something in one’s life. Two major decisions in my personal and professional life were made in certain geographical locations away from where I lived and worked!