Thanks Steve

Steve, I owe you my sincere gratitude.  It was you who got me started down the path that has become part of an insatiable mission in my life– a thrist to create, to innovate.  I was an early Apple II computer that turned my world upside down.  That little machine gave me the ability to not only dream, but turn ideas into reality. And it was your entrepreneurial spirit that lives today not only in me, but droves of people across the world.  

Who knew that years later I’d be sitting in your office at NeXT Computer, completely amazed at all of your accomplishments that adorned your office… from Apple to PiXar.  And I remember you saying that one day, your operating system NEXTSTEP would be on every computer in virtually every home across the world.  I didn’t quite know what you meant as it seemed like a tall order at the time.  But as you promised, you delivered, and today Mac OS X is a living testament.  

From Steve’s 1995 commencement address at Stanford University:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Thanks Steve.

Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish