February 23: And then there is the snow leopard. That beautiful creature that lives in the mountains of Asia. Elusive, almost mystical in its coming and goings. Rarely seen, silent, beautiful.
But also The Snow Leopard by Peter Mattiessen. An incredible read. A journey of adventure,travel, enlightenment and a read that changed me.
He searched for the snow leopard. But in the time he wandered, learned about life, culture, spirituality,he also learned about himself.
So many times we never know when the vision quest will begin. We are off doing one thing and then we find ourselves in our personal vision quest. It challenges our very fiber and it changes us.
In the end he never found the snow leopard. Although after he left his friend, who stayed behind, his friend told him that shortly thereafter the snow leopard appeared. He was okay with that report.
To me he seemed to be at peace with the searching. At peace on the quest itself. At peace with where he was at that moment. Maybe we are not ready to find what we think we need to find. Maybe we are not ready for the final reveal. After all is said and done, it is the journey, the search, the longing, the realization that the goal may be the walk itself, the climb. What is the meaning of your life. Could it be that how you live your life each day is the meaning of it. Is the meaning of you. Not some external acquisition, not some finish line, but the presentation of yourself each day. Only then may you be ready for the snow leopard in your individual quest.
In the Ageless Experiment the meaning of your life is how you live your life each day. How you treat others. How you treat yourself. Each day.