excerpt
Bowser, Ken set out to reinvent himself. To begin, he marshalled his intellect
and inner determination to resolve the problem of automatic reaction. He
would no longer permit himself to lapse into any form of mindless action.
He analysed every move. Which side of the bed do you get out on? How do
you start your day? Which foot do you step out of the shower with?
He set out to intentionally disorder the routine order of his life in all
aspects and for the next six months he monitored, considered and reordered
each act, an exercise that, in his words, required white-hot discipline.
Ken found that focusing on his every move made him more aware of
the minutia of the world around him. His thoughts were clearer. His daily
walks along the beach began to reinstate balance between man and nature.
Best of all, his sense of curiosity was returning.
It would be healthy for each of us to take time off every tenth year to
just check things out because we are no longer what we were. We are
creatures of the universe, which is in perpetual flux every millionth of
a second, and this truth shouldn’t be offset by the fact that we are also
creatures of habit.
It’s not easy, but it imparts real insights. Until we can take an honest
look at ourselves, there isn’t a hope in hell that we can do anything
other than make the same disappointing mistakes, over and over again.
~~
Ken was facing a crisis that had been building for half a lifetime. The
Toronto years spent tethered to the giant canvases of Isumataq together with
endless hours chasing necessary funds on the rubber-chicken circuit had
taken a physical toll. Those years of obsessive labour in combination with
the unhappy time after his return to Vancouver with Karen played havoc with
his health. He ate poorly if at all, drank too much, and most of his friends
busied themselves elsewhere in realization that they couldn’t compete with
Ken’s dedication to the northern project. His waistline increased from a firm
32” to an uncomfortable 39” and overall his strength and vitality declined
markedly.
When he cut his ties with Karen, he left mainland British Columbia as
well. One of the first fishing destinations he had visited as a new immigrant
to Canada was Nile Creek, a few hundred metres from his present location.
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