I am writing this in the airport terminal waiting for my flight. In front of me is a large window facing the runways. We had a drizzle overnight and the runways are slightly damp but the sun is out and it promises to be a nice day. Behind me there is a hurly burly of people coming and going. Some of my fellow passengers on their way to their own vacations, some like me returning to home. I suppose that I should recap what conclusions or lessons that I’ve learned on this trip. Well this trip wasn’t really about that. This was more a reset button for my life. A chance to disconnect from all the responsibilities of my life. In that I was mostly successful. But I suppose some due reflection is necessary.
Firstly some thoughts for Houston with regard to New York’s success as a major city.
Don’t be afraid to embrace other cultures or new ideas. Every few decades a new wave of immigrants descends upon this city and they find a place to live and contribute to the city. Don’t fret about how different they look or sound. They will integrate eventually.
Be bold enough to invest in the city’s future. World class cities need to have big infrastructure not just to grow but to survive. The city’s subway and bridge projects were no doubt costly undertakings but today they are essential to the city. We should not look at such things as burdens for the short-term but as investments in the future.
Redevelop the old. Don’t just endlessly expand outwards. We have so many derelict neighborhoods inside the loop that we can redevelop or re purpose. We should look to growing up not out. Think of inside the loop as our Manhattan island. Think of how much we could do inside that little island of land surrounded by our moat of roads.
Don’t be in a rush. Remember that New York is hundreds of years older. Houston will get there, but take your time.
Now I’m a few short hours away from resuming my responsibilities of life. Both work and family responsibilities. I am no longer as fearful about these as I was before. I believe that I can give a good accounting of myself. Partly because I’ve been reinvigorated by the trip but also because I have begun to understand the importance of balance in my life.
Before the trip I reasoned that I needed to focus all my energy on my family responsibilities and exclude everything else in my life. Well I can’t do that. Firstly because I would burn out quickly if I followed that path and wouldn’t last very long, but also because it is unfair to me as an individual. I don’t know how well this decision will be received but I think it the sensible thing to do.
I am also thinking of the long-term more these days. What I want to accomplish, what personal projects I have ongoing that I need to finish once and for all, and what projects I need to abandon and take those resources that I’ve invested there and refocus them on more worthwhile avenues.
Of course none of this will happen overnight but with renewed vigor I hope to make good progress on all this soon.
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