The pursuit of excellence

I take a flight nearly every other day. That means I wander through some airport every other day as well. And besides the lounge, the other most visited outlet in the airport is the bookshop. Every now and then I buy one or two... but I must confess it don't finish most of these. They sit pretty on the shelf and maybe even convey a sense of (false) scholarship of the owner. The truth is I have developed a particular taste in literature. I can exactly define it for it ranges from Exupery and Bach on the one hand, to Townsend to Irving and Dahl on the other. I can't put these books down once I pick them up. 

Today at the bookshop, I saw a book I did read cover to cover a few years ago. Not by an author, but he did write this one book. It's called The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, who tragically passed away from cancer having delivered his last lecture. I really resonated with the sentiments he expressed.

We sometimes lead such busy lives that we don't realize how barren they are. Just the other day, as I was recovering from 'overheat', consequence of running around too much and consuming too much hot foods, my dear daughter had prudently decided to limit her proximity. We were passing each other in a corridor and she matter-of-factly remarked that it should not touch her as she was to sit for an exam the day after. She's 14 and thoroughly responsible! Growing straight into adulthood, and very much nurtured, like her brother, by the school ethos of pursuing excellence in everything they do. It's important though to also have a purpose to these pursuits. Which brings me back to Exupery and his Le Petit Prince. The little prince laments the grown ups who don't get it anymore.

Since I am presently of this disposition, there is no better time for me to similarly take a sabbatical.