# Your Life in the Future

I want to have friends that are virtuous or at least trying to lead a virtuous life; who consider the development of virtue and relationship with God to be of primal importance. I want to have friends who are a mix of productive and contemplative; who can think about and discuss things openly and honestly, while still being able to help me out in a bind, and whom I can learn from. These would be people who shape the material landscape with their brains and hands - farmers, writers, engineers, builders. I want these people to be personable, reliable, and tight-knit.

I want to have leisure that is:
- reading and discussing good books - theology, journals, and stories.
- singing good music with friends.
- continuing to improve my drawing skills.
- do things with my body - carpentry, field work, etc.

The environments that I do these in need to be conducive. E.G. - the shop needs to be more hospitable (water, maybe snacks, music)

I want friends who will challenge me and call me out. I want friends who I can challenge without being a complete upturning. I would like to have a social life which is not at odds with my productive life, and rather compliments it. I want to not have hard boundaries between productivity and pleasure, but at the same time, not have everything devolve into one or the other.

The ideal family life I have in mind is open and communicative.

I would like children to be involved (or at least able to) in the family enterprise. I would like my wife to have a role in that which she does not feel burdened by, but rather is an excellent use of her skills. I think that even secretarial work, involving money, could be too burdensome. I want to strike a balance: I would like to be able to invite my children to participate, not beg them to. I would like the enterprise to be scalable in that way.

I hope my partner is:
- Honest and open.
- Stable and calm - while still bold.
- Secure in knowing she is loved.
- Intelligent and handy.
- Shares my values - but compliments my capabilities.

I hope to be able to involve my parents in my life - and her parents - and even take them in. I want to be close with them, with good boundaries.

I hope that my career is:
- Independent of large (often evil) agencies
- Facilitates technical growth
- Works with local people as much as possible
- Can involve children - so has a good amount of manual labor
- Helps local people; works with local people; builds up local community
- Stays in touch with biological processes and the laws of nature
- Solves real problems, like lack of good healthy food

# Vision
- A Holistic and Holy World
- Deep and living roots between plants, land, people, and God
- People engaged in productive labor that they own

# Mission
- Build local community that unites work, faith, and family
- Grow healthier food and ecosystems to prevent disease and increase quality of life
- Form appropriate technology and systems at the service of the above
# Goals & Actions

These are manly rules - DIFFICULT BUT ACHIEVABLE!
Do what God wants though - failure is not (mortal) sin!
### Daily
- Healthy lunch
- Exercise and stretch
- Talk with dad about one important thing in the morning
- Talk with mom about one important thing in the morning
- Talk with sis about one important thing in the evening
- Do Examen (see below)
- Set alarm for 10pm
- Make bed and tidy room after waking
### Few times a week
- Play a sport
### Weekly
- Men's group
- Set up one new social appointment
- Offer two 1:1 meetings with old friends (events do not count)
- Make a preflight checklist for the week, early Sunday morning
### Monthly
- 1 conference
- 1 new skill/subject per month
- 1 fiction book/month
- Balance books
- Plan an outing for friends
- Facilitate two friends meeting one another
### Other
- Try to make one new connection at EVERY event
- Take on projects that are just on the edge of my abilities
- Build improvements for the shop
- Read poetry rather than browsing the interwebs?
### Drive Towards
- A garden/farm plan (keep it portable)
- A house plan (first, what are the needs?)
- A more functional shop

## Ignatian Examen
1. Place yourself in God's presence. Give thanks for His love!
2. Pray for the grace to understand God's action in your life.
3. Review your day - recall specific moments and feelings.
4. Reflect on what you did/said/thought. Did you draw to God?
5. Look to tomorrow - how might you collaborate more effectively with God? (Write your do-list for tomorrow), and conclude with the "Our Father".