I am truly grateful to all those companies and people who have participated in Longboarding For Peace. I know we are making a difference. It can be difficult doing something like this, but frankly, the support of a number of key people has kept me rolling. That, and longboarding. I still maintain that you have to have a step in order to achieve the desired outcome. For example, you can’t just scream “live in balance! live in peace!” You have to engage people and inspire them to take action. That’s what great art does. That’s what a great leader will do and hopefully that’s what Longboarding for Peace can do.I have chosen to make longboarding for peace part of my path. It doesn’t trump my efforts with Concrete Wave magazine, it enhances them. What is truly delightful about publishing the magazine are the hundreds of amazing people I’ve met and work with. They are genuine, passionate and their hearts are in the right place. Sure, shuffled amongst these amazing people you get the rare oddball that is operating from a different perspective. That’s just a polite way of saying that there are some very toxic people out there but thankfully, I don’t run into them much.

Why am I writing this specific piece? I am extraordinarily frustrated by two individuals who I have been trying to meet up with. They have money, they have power and they could really BLOW longboarding for peace up in a huge way.

It would be beneficial to them and to the movement. But they are slow on the uptake. It feels like I am nailing jelly to the wall. An email here, a voice mail. It’s f**king  frustrating.

I ALMOST hit send today on an email telling them in a polite way to go hoop themselves. But I calmly and rationally decided not to do anything. I am not going to call them…I am not going to email. I’ll let them one day figure out what they missed.

The one thing that most people don’t recall is the early days of something starting up. I am here to tell you that I DO recall what my life was like in 1997 and 1998 when I started International Longboarder. I was ignored…laughed at and it only hardened my resolve.

So, as I move into what will be the first full year of Longboarding for Peace (Jan 2013 is our anniversary) I am strengthened by the fact that history repeats…

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you WIN. (M. Gandhi)

So, this post is dedicated to anyone who never got a followup email or phone call returned…it’s dedicated to all those people who are filled with passion and find it stifled by people too busy to take the time to examine how it could benefit many.

The reality is this – if you find someone (or happen to be a person )who truly is bursting with passion, nothing is going to stop them or you.

I am living proof of this and I will dedicate the next 3 to 4 decades towards longboarding for peace.

Longboarding for peace…. of mind.

Cheers,
Michael