East Pierian Wilford Welch has written a memoir entitled Values & Circumstances That Shaped A Life: A Wild Journey. I wondered how he arrived at that title until I read a few chapters.
Maybe it was the time he broke his neck playing polo in Mongolia (see cover photo). Or when he hooked into a Guinness-record blue marlin. Or when he and his wife Carole were hanging out with the Dalai Lama or Bishop Desmond Tutu.
You get the idea.
Wilford’s extraordinary journey began just before his senior year at Yale, when he asked himself: “What major events might take place over the next few years that I can hook my star to?” His answer came almost spontaneously: “The U.S. and China must reestablish diplomatic relations.” That insight shaped the rest of his life, leading to numerous academic achievements and four distinguished careers, as a U.S diplomat focused on Asia, as an international business consultant, as the publisher of a world affairs journal, and as a teacher at two graduate schools.
Along the way, he gained insights which led to a somber conclusion: “while the human race is extraordinary in developing new technologies, we are in our adolescence in terms of our ability to deal with the consequences of our technological advances and the complexities of our societies.”
In the final chapter, Wilford details nine disturbing trends that cause him “deep concern for our collective future.” Out of this dire picture, Wilford sees a ray of hope: “You, me, and the rest of humanity have a choice as to how this story ends.” Wilford’s mission is to give that choice a chance.
A Wild Journey is available online and at Sausalito Books by the Bay.