No post has ever been this difficult to write.
For 22 days my Facebook and Instagram feeds featured one post by Dan about a poignant moment in the day from his latest adventure at Mt. Everest. This past Saturday morning, instead of a ‘day 23’ update I read the devastating news from his sister that he had not survived the avalanche that hit the Mt. Everest basecamp.
At UC Irvine, where we met 14 years ago, he was the over-the-top fun, slightly obnoxious but always-hilarious computer genius from the fraternity next door. (Oh yes, I was in a sorority 🙂 The last time I saw him was when we met for lunch about two years ago. We spent nearly 3 hours engaged in a conversation about all things deep and meaningful — work, experiences, books, personal growth, travel, and social causes. I felt so cool that he was interested in hearing all about my trip to Guatemala to help build a school and that he wanted to join me on that trip one day. At the time I thought, “Wow, this guy has really grown up.” Looking back, it was probably me who had changed even more. Truthfully, he had always been living a rich life, but I just couldn’t see it until then.
And that’s partly why I wanted to share my experience of him on this platform – as an example of a person who lived a rich life.
I don’t think there are enough great examples of truly ‘rich’ people. The ones I see glorified in the media, by society at-large, and even by people around me, are not the ones who embody the freedom, adventure, and fulfillment that define a ‘rich’ life – not to me at least.
Besides climbing Everest, which Dan had attempted before, he was everywhere in the world from Burning Man to the Maldives. He worked on projects that were meaningful to him, both at Google and independently. He worked to make himself and the world better. He helped raise awareness about climate change through a charity he started. He acted on concern about those in need – from victims of Hurricane Sandy in New York to the children who would benefit from the orphanages in Nepal he hoped to fund (that was one of the purposes of his Mt. Everest climb). He was silly, creative, brilliant and random. He was incredibly adored by all in his ginormous circle of friends. He is certain to have left an indelible mark on the world and in every person who was fortunate to experience him. All of that and more by age 33.
These don’t have to be your dreams. You can design your life differently. But that’s the point here. You can consciously design and live the life of your own choosing. Money does not define rich.
May his beautiful soul rest in peace.
Recent Comments