I’m happy to announce a new category on the VogelWorks blog: Guest Essays.
I’m also very happy that the first series of guest essays have already been delivered to me, and I’ve had them for some time.
Back in 2007, I was a sophomore in college at MIT. I was a member of a fraternity and lived in the fraternity house at the time. At the end of one of our meals, as usual, I was hanging around talking with people lingering after dinner. I’ve always pondered what some people would think of as the “arcane truths of the world.” My nature demands it. But, we all ponder these things from time to time.
At the end of this particular meal, I turned to my friend Luis, the acclaimed “super senior” of my era, and said, “Luis, I’ve got a question for you, what are the five most important things to learn in life?”. And that’s the beginning of the story of Luis’s essays.
What’s important for the reader to understand is why I would specifically ask Luis this question. I strongly believe that the messenger is the message, so I’ll have to tell you a few things about Luis and this question.
First and foremost, I asked Luis this question because I respect him. I’ve met very few people that have the balls to stand up for what simply is right, especially when it’s hard, like Luis does.
To illustrate, a friend of mine once sent a YouTube clip out to an email list I was once apart of. In the clip, a man waiting in line on his cell phone was attacked and badly beaten by another man while a group of men in close proximity simply pretended not to be there. I share this seemingly random anecdote because Luis once found himself in not so different of a situation, except he did the exact opposite. Luis attempted to help a complete stranger that was being beaten by two other men. While some have questioned the decision, if you know Luis, you understand. Luis could never stand aside while this was happening to someone. It simply wouldn’t be right.
Secondly, Luis is a person that I would describe as “unbounded.” Things like fear, language, money, distance, sickness, political unrest, or whatever obstacle you can possibly think of, don’t stand in Luis’s way. I think I can put all those in one paragraph. Some years before I arrived at MIT, Luis made the decision to take some time away from school and travel the world. And by travel the world, I mean the entire world. Luis left school and started a painting company. He saved up enough money and prepared diligently for his travels. He started in Japan and biked, walked, flew, and boated his way through Asia, Eurasia, (I forget all the checkpoints) and down into Africa. He did this himself. He found ways to communicate with the people, and he found ways to go places that are usually inaccessible to foreigners. He made it into countries like the Congo one way or another.
Lastly, I asked Luis what the 5 most important things to learn in life because I knew it be important to him. Between his travels, family, and own intellect, Luis is a very wise man. He also understands the importance of learning. I know this because, even though I wasn’t around to experience all of it, I know he has thought deeply about the world, it’s people, himself, and learned a lot.
And I was correct. Luis delivered the first part of his essays to me on April 17th, 2007. Over the course of the next year and a half, he wrote six essays to complete the series.
Not bad judgment on my part in choosing who to ask such a loaded question in passing at the dinner table.
And for these reasons, he deserves the spot as the author of the first set of guest essays on this publication. It may be tough finding the second “Guest Essayist”, but I’m sure someone will rise to the challenge. Enjoy.
Kevin
7.14.2009
