1300 days in the USA…..

I had a lovely weekend in Denver. We had our first snow fall. It was pretty mild; the chill in the air was nice and refreshing. I am not looking forward to the temperatures dropping even more though – but winter.. must.. come…

Yesterday I went to the wild life sanctuary – it was such an emotional and amazing experience. Emotional because I love and appreciate nature and animals. It is very sad how people abuse and torture animals and it was so awesome to see 150 plus animals rescued from zoos, circuses etc where they have been terribly abused.. They get to live in the closest environment to the wild – since they cannot be re-introduced –they have a nice new home where they are cared for and have plenty of space and friends. You can hear the huge Tigers growling, walking around playing in the huge wide open spaces – the land is so vast you need binoculars to see the lions. It was just an uplifting experience for me.

http://www.wildanimalsanctuary.org/

All this inspiration had me thinking about all the things in my life that I am so grateful and humbled to have experienced:

Pieces of me...
From sitting at a race track in Singapore under the majestic city lights watching the F1 cars go by and absorbing myself in the sport I love so much - to staying in a hostel in New York City with my brother trying not to snore. From walking the 7 star luxury lobby of the Burj Al Arab in Dubai to holding the hand of someone dying of AIDS in South Africa. From giving a homeless person a subway meal on the city streets of Denver to speaking Afrikaans to Charlize Theron at the Democratic National Convention. From walking the streets of Paris staring in awe at the Eiffel tower to driving in 5 Super cars on winding roads in Beaver creek.

From dancing in a nightclub in Las Vegas to walking in a Wild life Sanctuary. From modeling in a beauty pageant in Johannesburg to writing a motivational book and having a publisher recognize it. From celebrating my 30th birthday on the canals in Venice to having an AHA! moment walking on the beach in San Diego watching dolphins. From sitting in my tiny cubicle doing budget reports to racing a snow mobile in the mountains of Vail. From driving celebrities around doing their shopping sprees to learning to shoot firearms at a firing range and racing cars on the streets. From sending a child to school and seeing him graduate who would never otherwise have done so, to taking my last R10 and going to watch a cool movie! From having SO much of everything to having next to nothing! Sleeping in a train station in Rome to sleeping in a 5 star resort in Florida.

I can just go on and on. And my life is not just about travelling and having fun, it’s about purpose and making a difference. I have been blessed with so much privilege and so much opportunity and also been given the desire to do so much more with what I have.
Life truly is wonderful! What an adventure. What an opportunity for me to enrich myself, change the world – touch people, help people, improve the environment, help the animals, heal the broken hearted and make someone happy and be happy myself – full of who I am – explore all of who I am and give everything I have in every moment that I am blessed with that I can sigh my last, not with regret but with exhaustion and saying.. Wow!! I truly LIVED my life – Now it’s time to rest!

Until then – I have no desire to “rest” – I want to live and be and feel and do..…
It’s not just my desire – but my obligation – and I am happy to oblige!