So today I am supposed to have woken up knowing all the secrets to life.

Supposed it a big word, bru.

If anything the last week has taught me that no matter how solid you think you have things, they can change in an instant, even though the signs of that instant have been there for ages. I read somewhere that there is never any situation where you could be 100% sure of the outcome. An act of God could be anything, no matter how random you think it could be.

I have lived in a few places, travelled many more. I have so many people I can call friends that I could never get to all of them to give them the attention I would like to give them. Fortunately/unfortunately I am also private by nature and this has led to seasons of misunderstanding in my life. Will I ever be the guy who shouts it from the rooftops?

Doubt it.

Urban Ninja is a persona which suits me, Raoul de Jongh, to the endmost degree. I am the guy who operates in the dark and I go unseen, even if my work is visible. I am shy, I am creative and I am the storyteller. I would never change that to suit societies demands.

So here is a short list of the irreplaceable lessons I have learnt so far. I hope you can use some of them in your journey to here, or past here. Remember that nobody can tell you what to do, or who to be. They might experience a high five in the face from me if they do.

1. Do it now, and ask for forgiveness later. The process of getting permission takes alot longer.
2. Buy new socks and underpants more often than you think.
3. You can never carry “too much” food on the bike at Ironman.
4. The bottom line is the finish line. Stop talking game before that. Show us your game.
5. There will be casualties along the way.
6. Stop, take a moment to breathe, every single day. I neglected this for a while recently (big lesson).
7. Love like you don’t know how. Its not something you should be thinking about. Don’t change your love because if its real and yours and 100% then it should always be good enough.
8. The years get shorter, EVERY year.
9. Your mother is generally always right.
10. Apply the 80/20 rule to your life, and everything you do.
11. The best pie in the world is out there. Its only served at 4am in a dodgy Engen. It is accompanied by a Milo shake.
12. Faster IS faster.
13. You are allowed to feel like a dinkum right idiot in front of your dad. He will still love you.
14. Smile.
15. Smile again.
16. Quiet time is vital for the success of any relationship. Even with yourself.
17. Get out there and push your limits. They are only in your mind.
18. Get rid of your material clutter. Its infecting your mind.
19. Its all about the bike…
20. You are what you eat.
21. You ARE enough. Just BE it.
22. Wine is the best conversation maker. Big red wines make friends for life.
23. Don’t fall in love/date/sleep with every interesting person you meet. Our inherent advertising driven lives have made us immune to proper friendship and companionship.
24. If you want to walk with the big dogs, don’t piss like a puppy my boooaaytchaaay.
25. Suffering together with someone bonds you for life.
26. Give stuff away without expecting stuff in return.
27. Delegate well.
28. The world will have us believe we have to fight for stuff in a world where war isn’t headline news, but just news. If you live your life right, fighting will not have to happen.
29. When you fall, get up and repeat. Unless there is a bone poking out of a limb, obviously.
30. Say thank you more, and sorry less.

I could share at least a few hundred more but I will stop at 30. Have a fabulous day. I certainly am going to do my best to do just that.