A Childhood Under the Stars

Every June when I was a kid, my Mom would quit her job and we’d move to a lake near our home.

We’d spend the summer water skiing, swimming and riding bikes.

We slept outside under the stars on 2-inch blue mats that my Father made for us. The sun rose over the mountains across the lake and woke us up early every morning, so he made a sun shield to block the rising sun and give us an hour more of sleep.

There were no gates, no tent, we all slept out in the open under the stars. One night I woke up to my uncle’s booming voice telling my cousin not to move. There was a skunk standing on his back as he slept.

The lake was in the middle of nowhere so the night sky was filled with stars. I would stare at the sky as I fell asleep every night, my thoughts wandering over a thousand things.

Our beacon to find our way home when we were out on the lake was a massive rock formation called Turtle Rock. It was a mark on the landscape that guided us home.

Living outside gave me a sense of what was real and eternal, and connected me with the quiet wisdom of the natural world. Increasingly that connection feels distant. Most of stare at a 27-inch screen all day, seeking wisdom and guidance within that small frame.

Last week, the CEO of OpenAI, the company that owns ChatGPT, was abruptly fired by the board for being “not consistently candid in his communications.” Then he was re-hired as CEO and the board of directors was out. It was a dizzying few days.

We are all feeling the earth move beneath our feet with the rise of AI. The chaos and turmoil in the world around us drives me ever more back to what is real, to what I can trust, to what calms my spirit.

As chaos reigns “out there”, I hope that you find peace and wisdom in connection to the natural world around you.

When you’re ready, there are two ways I can help:

1) I highly recommend the same 2-hour course ($150) I used to get started posting on LinkedIn (affiliate link): THE LINKEDIN OPERATING SYSTEM

2) We can work together to create a content system, tell your stories and amplify your brand: GHEIM@GRAYSONHAYDEN.COM