Writing
This has, and will always be my first practice, my skill, my salvation. It's how I tap into my life force. It's how I remind myself that I am more than all the bad and impulsive decisions I've made in my life. It's my lifeboat. I hope in 2030 to say that I was able to find more ways to share my writing with others, to use it to create strong, sustainable momentum towards a safer and happier world, and to inspire others to keep writing.
Banff
Getting this literary journalism residency in 2011 changed how I saw myself. I felt what it was to be successful and to be with successful journalists. I experienced the beauty of Western Canada. I felt the responsibility to care more deeply about the world and to think more seriously about it. To be less glib and more committed. I started to feel the glimmers of the bigger picture, that there was something, some kind of power that we needed to harness, if we were going to make it out of this publishing wasteland. As I head back to Calgary in February, I hope that I can tap back into the place in my soul that I found in that refuge.
Learning to code
This changed everything for me. Not just because I learned to code, but because I learned to think more algorithmically, make better decisions about my life and discovered a subject in which I could show thought leadership.
Grants
The money was a life saver for me in one of the darkest decembers of my life. But more than that, the affirmation from peers. The chance to explore and think deeply about a subject and spend a few years, instead of a few days thinking about an idea. I hope I can finally deliver on that vote of confidence.
CanCode
This money helped kids and teachers across Canada. Helped the non-profit I built, and helped me start to dig my way out of credit card debt.
My teachers
Where would I be without Mingyur Rinpoche and S.E. Goenka? They introduced me to my buddha nature, the dharma, and provided me with sangha that made sustaining this life changing practice possible. It's hard for me to pin down whether the incremental improvement of my life happened with coding, or meditation, since I started them both at the same time. But the algorithms that I have received through these teachings and trainings are my most precious and important tools.
Ben
He's a tough teacher, but his affection, intelligence, humour and sweetness are a constant blessing every day.
My family
When I hit a financial crisis near the beginning of the decade, I don't know what I would have done without my parents. They are still a challenge, their volatile marriage still a mystery, but I don't expect them to be around by 2030. They have given me so much, emotionally, financially, culturally, intellectually. My brother is still one of the funniest people I know, and I hope he makes it though his psychological challenges.
Insight Timer
I had no idea when I first logged into this how influential it would be to my practice. Almost 2000 hours later, I can't imagine my life without it.
Insulin
This big discovery of 2020 and the decade was the role that insulin was playing in my weight problems. I'm less than 10 lbs away from a healthy weight and feel more confident than I've ever been that I will not only get to that weight, but stay there for the rest of my life. One thing I'm confident I will still be grateful for in 2030.
