Day 20: Celebrate (Anaheim to San Diego)

I spent today in amazement.

Yesterday I had set an intention to maximize enjoyment for these last two shows. Tonight I was rewarded: people who I hadn't seen in a while came out, I ate great food, I was with my friends as their team won the world series. We also had the best crowd of the tour, and every band was on their A-game in response.

It's the kind of night you can't plan, you can only hope to be there when it happens.

We played at a House of Blues venue. I was telling one of the tourmates from another band how unlikely it is for me and my crew to be here. It's one of the venues I would hear of as a kid in the Island and dream about playing there, like some mythical creature to one day slay.

Check.

In the past, I was so focused on goals I would forget to enjoy small wins. That equation led me to burnout. It needed balancing. The difference now is acknowledging the luck and the privilege I have to be where I am; healthy, above all, and on the road doing something I love, with vibes are at an all time high to boot.

At the turn of midnight it will be my 40th birthday too, an age that I also looked ahead to as a mythical creature, frightened of imaginary implications and of growing responsibilities. But if you are paying attention, with age also comes wisdom. In this case, it's the knowledge that it is a privilege to get there, the only other option is well... death.

So tomorrow on the fortieth anniversary of my birth, and the last day of this tour, the intention remains the same, celebrate the small stuff and enjoy.