being engaged

The front of our store in Saratoga Springs, NY

I’ve had a unique opportunity over the last five years to re-define what a “good life” means to me. When I stop and think about it I realize it’s not an idea I’ve formulated over just the last few years, but something I’ve spent my entire life trying to understand.

I think everyone is in a lifelong search for a good life. We all want to live a good life. For the lucky ones the meaning of “a good life” reveals itself early on. For the rest of us, it’s something we’re constantly trying to define.

As children, adults ask us, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” In high school our teachers ask us, “What do you want to do with your life?” When we get toward the end of college we begin to ask ourselves, “What’s the next step?” The plan is almost always to have a good life – the path to follow in order to get there is the bigger question.

Like many people, I got off to a slow start in life by choosing a career that was wrong for me. What that path taught me, however, is what really matters to me. To me, the important thing, I discovered, was to be engaged – no not (necessarily) betrothed, but we’ll get to that. I wanted to be involved in things I found important. I wanted to be talking to and learning from interesting people – engaged by them. Next summer has allowed me to do that.

To truly engage people you need to discuss your passions. While it took me nearly 40 years to recognize, design is my passion, I eventually figured that out. I get to spend every day talking about great design (usually with people who appreciate it as much as I do). Getting to do what you are most passionate about – now THAT’S a good life!

Once I got to that point in my life I was opened up to many other levels of happiness. I met the woman of my dreams and my best friend and eventually we became engaged.