Steve Jobs was an inspiring figure, but I can’t say that he was a source of personal inspiration. Instead he did something more practical: he made my life possible. Along with Bill Gates, I owe Jobs for providing the very structure which allows me to pursue my current career and hobbies. I learned to program on an Apple II+. I played my first interactive fiction game on the same machine. The spark to use computers to create worlds began there. Who knows what direction my life would have taken without that computer?

Jumping to present day, Apple products have become part of my ecosystem. I have come to take for granted things that were impossible five years ago. The iPhone and iPad are necessities. Sometimes I touch them for no reason other than to confirm they exist.

Steve Jobs made my life easier and more interesting. That’s not a trivial accomplishment. So I took it hard when he died. Part of it was the understanding that the life force that was Steve Jobs had left the planet and he’d never show me something really great again. Part of it was me getting overwhelmed with how much he had impacted the world. For me it is an ideal to live a life that matters in a way that affects other people, in a way that weaves a legacy. Jobs did that on a grand scale. Personal opinions aside, his influence on the world is undeniable.

So aspire to be great in that thing you care about. Go as far as you can with your passions. People will notice. Your fire fans theirs. The memory of others is the only certain immortality.

This past weekend I returned to Ohio to take part in my 20 year high school reunion. My friend Steve and his family graciously allowed me to stay with them while I visited. Steve’s someone who I can talk with as though no time has passed at all. I explain the existence of his five children as the work of a temporal rift, very common in northeastern Ohio. I experienced this temporal dissonance with the rest of my classmates as well. They all felt familiar and it was easy to get along with everyone there. Yet the presence of spouses and children and the accounts of intervening years reminded me that time indeed had passed for all of us. Apparently I have mannerisms that have not changed since high school and my classmates took delight in pointing them out.

I was struck by the compassion shown by my former classmates as though the passage of years had mellowed their disposition, rendering them affable to all, regardless of what social cliques we may have belonged to in the past. Also on display was the joyful weariness and wisdom that accompanied the rearing of children.

It was over too soon. I was surprised by how much I wanted to spend more time with everyone. I was able to have a few deep, probing conversations with a few people. We shut down the bar, in fact, and we still weren’t done talking. Apparently an evening and an afternoon are not adequate to fill in 15-20 year gaps.

I am thankful for the experience. If you get a chance at such a reunion, I encourage you to put aside your trepidation and take the plunge.

Okay, I’m a little late with this post, but I have been delightfully preoccupied lately.

The other day I went to my girlfriend’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class. Let’s pause and reflect on the layers of awesomeness in that sentence alone. It is like a delicious cake. Okay, let’s move on. Bess has been taking classes for a while and she speaks enthusiastically about how fun they are. Years ago I had taken Wushu, so I had some rudimentary martial arts experience. So when she invited me to come along, I agreed on the condition that she didn’t tie me into a pretzel, hold me above her head and throw me against the back wall. Bess assured me nothing of the kind would happen.

We showed up at the…dojo…gym? I’m not sure if there is a special term for where Jiu-Jitsu takes place. After signing a waiver and suiting up in a gi, I walked out onto the mat with Bess where a demonstration was already underway. I had hoped there would be some kind of intro for complete noobs, but they have you jump right in. Years ago, another version of me would have balked at the very idea of trying out what appeared to be a sport requiring much physical exertion. Also, I would have insisted on an in depth tutorial. But I was with Bess and I trust her and everything seems new again, so why not?

The first half of the class consisted of Bess and I taking turns subduing each other with the new move demonstrated by the instructor. Jiu-Jitsu is all about grappling and choke holds. You’re wrestling around on the ground 95% of the time. I hadn’t really expected that. I thought it might be about self-defense counter moves or something more like karate.

After rolling around for a while, we sat out and watched the second half of the class, which was about sparring. I remarked how everyone wore a disconcertingly impassive expression. Bess explained that each person was deep in thought, considering their next move, like participants in a chess match. There was no aggression or other intense emotions involved. No one wanted to hurt their sparring partner. I never really thought of it in that context. Bess joined in on the sparring. She held her own and looked like she knew what she was doing. I was really impressed!

Ultimately, I decided that Jiu-Jitsu wasn’t my thing, but I’m glad I tried it. It was more an exercise in being open to new things instead of deciding “I am this way” and missing out on opportunities to grow. Also, I want to spend as much time with this girl as possible.