In March 2020, uncertainty gripped the world as the COVID-19 pandemic spread rapidly. The markets were crashing. Businesses were shutting down. Schools and universities closed their doors. Strict lockdown measures confided millions to their homes.
Brent Underwood, a co-founder here at Daily Stoic and whose inspiring journeywe’ve been sharingover the past month, thought he’d found the perfect place to ride out the pandemic—a small California ghost town called Cerro Gordo he’d been slowly renovating and turning into a resort.
It was safe and isolated, beautiful and quiet…for a second. Then a freak series of snow storms trapped him there in Cerro Gordo for weeks with dwindling supplies and no running water. His retreat turned suddenly into a prison. Then he had a bout with appendicitis that required him to drive himself 2 hours to the closest clinic.
As we’ve said before, life comes at you fast.
And once they start coming, they don’t stop coming. The rest of the snow melted. Work progressed on the town. Media attention poured in. The New York Times profiled him and the town in a long-awaited piece. And then, before he even had time to send the article to his family, the town’s crown jewel—the American Hotel—burned to the ground…exactly 149 years to the day from the day it had opened. From triumph to disaster in a matter of hours.
Seneca himself tells the story of Rome burning to the ground and how the city of Lyons came to her aid with a large donation. Little did Lyons know that within a year Rome would be returning the favor because Lyons had burned.
Life is unpredictable…yet somehow very predictable. Life comes at us fast. It doesn’t stop. It puffs us up and brings us low. It blesses and curses us. All we can do is be ready. All we can do is pick up the pieces and keep going.
As we mentioned, Brent is a co-founder here at Daily Stoic and his new book, Ghost Town Living: Mining for Purpose and Chasing Dreams at the Edge of Death Valley, is chock-full of real-world examples of what it means to put this philosophy into practice. His journey to revive Cerro Gordo to its former glory, which Brent documented on YouTube, has captivated millions around the world. You can get Ghost Town Living over at the Painted Porch, where we have limited edition numbered and signed copies of the book. Grab yours today while supplies last!
