The Power of the Past. The Destruction of a Whisper. The Renewal of a Man.

And he says, Dad, the my foot hit the back of my head, and I'm like, oh shit, here we, you know, he's this is bad.

This is really bad.

And so anyway, so we're on the land and I'm just literally holding his femur in place.

Ambulance comes, we load up, we go to one hospital, and I'm looking around the hospital.

I have no idea where we've ended up.

SPEAKER_01: Hey, I'm Kevin Lowe, the host of The Lowdown with Kevin Lowe.

Here on the podcast, my aim is to show you the world through blind eyes.

And my hope is that you leave feeling inspired, motivated, and excited to take on the day.

Hey, welcome back to the podcast.

This is episode number 40, in which I am joined by a guest coming in all the way from the island of Maui.

Today's guest, Blake Hill, is a guy with a pretty interesting past.

As he's done some pretty awesome stuff.

I'm talking like riding motorcycles across the country and across the Arctic Circle to cycling through the mountains of Canada.

Not to mention taking his son around the world, hitting up different surfing spots while his son was on tour.

But even with all of that, Blake, I think he would agree that his greatest accomplishment is just being a dad.

Family is obviously super important to Blake, as you will soon discover.

Now, that's not to say that Blake's life hasn't been plagued by its fair shares of uh drama, just like all of us.

Because I think all of us understand that life is nothing but a series of ups and downs.

But does downs, does down times the traumatic events in our life?

You know what?

If we think of it the right way, we can turn it around and use it for good.

Maybe to help somebody else who's going through it also.

And I think that's exactly what Blake Hill set out to do, as he is now a published author.

You're gonna get to find out more about his book later in the episode.

But right now, as I introduced you to Blake Hill, I want to catch you up to speed where we are at in the story.

His life story.

Because right when he thought things were going okay, his wife came in for an embrace.

A simple hug.

Except it had anything but simple, ordinary consequences.

Because she would whisper in his ear, I'm done.

He would look at her bewildered, and she would repeat, I'm done with us.

SPEAKER_02: So starting with the divorce, and that that's really something that that truly put me to my knees because after being married for 20 years and with the same person for over around 25 years, and two children, and out of the blue, being asked for a divorce, that was a huge emotional toll.

Like it just a numbness in my body just took over.

And I kind of just went into autopilot.

And interesting, I read a quote today, and it said, sometimes in the darkness, all we can do is keep going.

And I thought, wow, that really applies.

And literally for you, that applies to you.

For me, it just became a whirlwind.

And within that whirlwind, I figured out because here I was, you know, looking at two kids, going, What am I gonna do?

Like that, that's huge.

I'm in my 50s and I had kids later in life.

So it's not like my kids were super young, but they were young.

And I was like, I have to lead by example here.

And there was definitely some dark, dark, dark days.

I I really just didn't even want to get out of bed, but gotta get, you know, I gotta get my daughter to school.

I got to keep life in a semilance of normal.

And so through that time period, I decided shortly after my wife asked me for a divorce, that I would take this big bicycle ride and ride across parts of Canada.

And I was riding one day and it was raining and cold.

I was in Banff and I was gonna ride to Jasper, which is about 120 miles, and there's about a 10,000 foot ascent you have to make.

And I got quasi to the top, and I didn't have the clothes for this because it's summertime, something, and it's not gonna be cold.

And there's ice pellets coming down and hitting my helmet.

And and that's really where the book came to me was just what are the emotions that are gonna come up through this time period?

And it's a grind.

I don't know if you've ridden a bicycle 10,000 feet, but that's a grind on your legs, not to mention just riding 120 miles for the day.

So that's where the book came to me, and that's where I decided I would take what however much time it was going to take, I was gonna figure out what was happening with inside me.

And so I spent about 16 months going deeper than myself and figuring out what each emotion meant to me and how that associated with the inner child within myself.

And so a lot of dad stuff came up, a lot of trauma for my dad, and it's taken some time, no doubt about it.

And I was able to ultimately find love within my life, and that was my goal.

I knew I wanted to have peace and joy and happiness and be back to laughing and enjoying myself.

So I'm gonna get sidetracked here.

So let's ask let's ask a specific question.

SPEAKER_01: Of course.

So I would love to know.

So that day when you were on your bike up in Canada, how long ago was that?

SPEAKER_02: That would be four years ago this July, because it was four years ago this month that my wife asked me for a divorce.

SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.

Wow.

So now at the time that your wife came to you and and said that she wanted a divorce, how long had you guys been married?

Twenty years.

Twenty years.

And at that time, how old were your kids?

SPEAKER_02: I think my son was 14 or 15.

So my and my daughter's three years younger.

SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.

Wow.

And uh I mean, oh my goodness.

So I know there's so much to your story, and I know that that's a very pivotal part.

And so I would love to kind of go back and let people get to know who you are a little bit.

And take us back because I know you used to and and still are doing all kinds of crazy stuff with motorcycles and cycling and stuff.

What are some of the crazy things that you've done in the past?

SPEAKER_02: I think probably like one of my greatest, you know, what what I really truly enjoy is just getting on a motorcycle and and going.

And so coming from California, where you have such a vast state, and you there's so many places to explore.

So we used to go out into the Mojave Desert, just little tiny tent, and half the time you didn't use it, and take enough food and some gear, and you'd spend days and see nobody, sleep under the stars and ride.

And I mean, I blew my motor out there once in the middle of the desert and had to leave a little note that just asked whoever came across my bike, please don't take it.

I'm coming back for it.

And then GPS the coordinates and call a buddy with a four-wheel drive to, you know, eventually meet up with me and then drive back out in the desert and get it.

And I've had the opportunity to ride in blizzards across uh Montana and uh New York.

I crossed the Arctic Circle on uh another motorcycle ride.

We rode through Canada, the Yukon, and through Alaska.

And on that journey, we actually never, I think all time on Pave Road was maybe 15 or 20 percent of the ride.

So lots and lots of backcountry riding.

SPEAKER_01: Now, now, where did where did this love for for motorcycles come from?

SPEAKER_02: Oddly, you know, it came, my dad took me motorcycle riding.

That was the one thing we shared that I actually enjoyed.

And I, I don't know, I was just hooked at a young age.

SPEAKER_01: So Yeah, that's so awesome.

And that that's what me, I mean, is is I remember at four years old, I remember I got my first dirt bike.

Four years old had training wheels on it.

And and and and that literally was something for myself that from that point forward, that would kind of shape my entire childhood because I don't know that there was a day that went by that I didn't get on my on my bike and ride.

And so I can totally relate with this this love, this passion that you had for it.

That's so awesome.

SPEAKER_02: It's a sense of freedom.

That was that was the beauty of it.

Like you just you felt invincible.

And it's in time period for me as a kid, evil can evil was huge.

So that's what I would get on my bike and I'd just, you know, try to do these stunts that evil did and stand on my seat and ride wheelies.

And I, you know, we plenty of times being chased by the cops because my parents would, you know, not be home in the day.

And I'd be like, Yeah, yeah, I'll I'll push it to the end of the street.

And of course we would ride all over.

And uh and yeah, yes, I I did get caught like in the, I think I was in the third or I was in the third grade, got caught by the cops.

My dad had to come come down, pick me up.

So uh it made you feel like you were older than you were and you were just, you know, uh enjoying and have and having that sense of freedom.

So it's awesome.

SPEAKER_01: Absolutely, absolutely.

Now, now you made reference to it earlier, and uh I don't know how much you you care to share about it.

That's totally up to you.

But I'm going to assume that maybe the relationship between you and your dad wasn't the best growing up.

SPEAKER_02: No, my dad was my dad was super volatile.

You you never knew when that volcano was going to erupt and quite abusive.

And he just came from a different world.

I'm happy to share anything that you ask me, but yeah, we definitely, you know, his idea of Christmas, because my parents divorced when I was about seventh grade, and his idea of Christmas was like, you know, pulling up in his car and flipping you a hundred bucks, you know.

So he just was an odd, he was an odd guy and lived a hard life.

And he pushed it to the max.

It it got to the point where I actually slept with a gun under my bed when I was 14, 15 years old.

That's how bad things had gotten when he he would come kick our door down and stuff like that.

I mean, it was just it was horrendous.

Nothing that any kid should ever have to live through.

SPEAKER_01: Yeah, definitely.

Now, now I'm assuming because I know I know you're a pretty amazing dad.

I know your your kids are a big part of your life and have been.

Is that something how you grew up was that something that you feel kind of shaped you into a parent knowing you didn't want to be like that?

SPEAKER_02: It's exactly what gave me um that's why I always say my dad didn't do it right, but in his lack of not doing it right showed me how I I could do it.

And I, you know, and I I wouldn't, you know, what I saw as a kid and other parents, how they treated their kids.

And that, you know, that kind of that stayed with me.

And ultimately, you know, we we come, we bring these kids into the world and we're we're supposed to guide them.

We don't do everything for them, but we guide them.

And I always looked at parenting as like having my arms out wide, and my kids have this illusion that they're walking down the road and they're doing everything, but I'm kind of, you know, arms out wide and just give them a little tap on each side, keeping them in line.

And so that that's my that's my thought on parenting.

But yeah, my dad definitely hit through his through his complete madness, I I attribute that to me being able to take the negative and turn it into a positive.

SPEAKER_01: I tell you that there's always there's always in situations like that, it seems like there's one of two ways that people go.

Either they end up becoming the person that they want to not be like, or they completely do as you did.

You take what you went through and you turn it around.

And like you said, you took a negative and turned it into a positive.

And that's just that's awesome.

SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I have a quote.

I say, the greatest gift in life is the life you choose to live.

So how how do you want to live?

You know, what what do you what do you want to choose?

So that that's where that comes from.

SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.

And that's the truth.

And that's what I mean, I can can totally relate to that quote because I know after I went blind, I mean, I had a choice.

I could have been bitter, I could have stayed in my bed, I could have not done anything, or I could get out and choose to live the life that I was given.

SPEAKER_02: Right.

And I and uh I I commend you.

What a you're a hero, man.

You are.

Truly.

I mean, you're a beacon of light.

That that's that's such an inspirational story.

And to do what you're doing now, so yeah.

SPEAKER_01: Well, thank you.

Well, well, hey, look, it gets me I get to meet awesome people like you.

So I think that's pretty fortunate.

SPEAKER_02: And vice versa.

SPEAKER_01: So Well, cool.

Well, well, man, so so we talked, we're we're kind of going down that road of of you being a dad and stuff, and I would love to know because I think it's super interesting.

I know your your son, he he grew up uh being a pretty awesome surfer right off the bat.

I'd love would love to know.

I I'm assuming he uh got those awesome skills from his dad.

SPEAKER_02: I think he bypassed me on skills at about age seven.

I just became the guy who drove him to the beach.

SPEAKER_01: So that's cool.

Now, but you guys, the two of you, you traveled around quite a bit though, correct?

Doing different surfing competitions and stuff.

SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we've been all over the world, and I feel blessed as a dad.

And then even through the course of his younger years, we he was awesome because we would look I would I'd have the car loaded and we'd go surf before school.

And he he'd always I'd pick him up after school and he'd always be like, kids kind of made fun of me today because I had wet hair.

And I'm like, how many of those kids went surfing before school?

And he said, None.

I said, look at you.

SPEAKER_01: That's so funny.

Oh man, that's so funny.

That's so cool.

So now your kids, did they pretty much grow up in Hawaii?

Is that like, or did you guys live somewhere else first?

SPEAKER_02: So they were born in Los Angeles and and uh we lived in Venice Beach, and uh so we were really blessed that when my daughter was born, we bought a second home in Hawaii.

And so my kids essentially really got to live in Los Angeles, and then we'd spend a lot of time in Hawaii.

And then uh about seven, seven years ago, eight, seven or eight years ago, we we moved here full time.

And um, so and they already had their friend base after spending so much time here.

So it's been a blessing for them to be able to see somewhat living in, you know, living in a huge city and and then also coming here where it's very small and everybody knows one another.

But we were blessed in Venice because everybody knows one another as as well.

But you still have this huge city of Los Angeles.

SPEAKER_01: So absolutely.

Absolutely.

Now, no, I'm just curious because I mean, Hawaii, I mean, that that's like such a bucket list uh vacation destination for so many people.

And I'm just curious, is it just as dreamy to actually live there all the time?

SPEAKER_02: I can't tell you that.

And everybody will move here.

SPEAKER_01: Hey, wait, wait, wait.

Everyone listening, it's horrible.

Don't ever think about it.

Vacation and go home.

He's dead.

SPEAKER_02: I'll put it this way.

I I'm I'm blessed and I have a I have a great life, and I'm I'm truly grateful for for my life.

SPEAKER_01: So it works for me.

SPEAKER_02: How about that?

SPEAKER_01: Yeah, well, that's awesome.

That's awesome.

Well, so I want to get to a point in your story where your son was actually, because I feel like this kind of kicks off a series of events.

And your son, he he was getting ready for a uh big time uh surfing competition, and he had an accident right beforehand.

SPEAKER_02: He did.

We were we were on the North Shore while he was getting ready for the triple crown, and he was four, he was 14.

Yeah, I believe was he 14?

He was round 14.

And so, or I might have turned as 15.

I can't, I'm sorry, I can't remember exactly.

So we're getting ready for that, and we're out the night before.

I'm I've filmed, I've always filmed him, so I'm shooting him so he can go back, review his footage, and and so we're we're on the beach that evening.

Time of day doesn't matter.

So it's the day before the contest, and I'm shooting him, and he goes, he's he loves to do big airs and big aerials, and it wasn't even a big day out surfing, and he, but he goes up, launches a big air, and he as he twisted and rotated, he uh did a spiral break on his femur.

So obviously it took more than just me to swim out and get him.

There was a there was a few of us, and we get them in, and we have the, you know, we to go from the north shore back into town is quite the ambulance ride.

And I'm literally I became his uh, I'm holding his femur.

Like I swim them out, or I swim out, I hook them, and I'm swimming them back in.

And he says, Dad, the my foot hit the back of my head, and I'm like, oh shit, here we, you know, he's this is bad.

This is really bad.

And so anyway, so we're on the land and I'm just literally holding his femur in place.

Ambulance comes, we load up, we go to one hospital, and I'm looking around the hospital.

I have no idea where we've ended up, and I'm looking around, going, we got to get out of here.

And I'm on the phone at that point, just texting everyone I know and calling and saying, I need help.

And so everyone's reaching back out saying, You don't want to be in the hospital, get out of there, go to another hospital.

So I literally turned to the nurse and I said, We need to go.

And she's she's like, I can't let you go.

And I said, No, we have to go.

And I said, I don't, you know, sometimes when you have a child, they treat them differently within the hospital.

And so I was just like, look, this kid's a young pro surfer.

Like, he has a career ahead of him.

I need him out of here to the next hospital so he can get proper treatment.

And she finally said, I'll sign off.

And so, and I was on the phone with another doctor as well.

And so he's riding in this ambulance just in beyond pain.

Like I it it was just it was horrendous to witness as a dad and the feeling for him.

And so we go through the trauma and we can't fly back to Maui just because he can't get on an airplane with his leg after we have surgery.

And so we sit in a hotel room for a month while he goes through physical therapy.

Eventually we get him home and it's right right before Christmas, and we start therapy again.

And then eventually we go to uh about a month later, we go to California and he starts therapy all over there, you know, all over again.

By March, he's back in the water surfing, and we've gone through this whole trauma with our whole family.

And I didn't see my daughter a lot for that whole period of time.

And so it's March, he's surfing again.

We're I'm celebrating.

He's celebrating, you know, we're so proud of him as parents.

And and then in May, we had gone back.

So in March we came back to Hawaii, and then May we went back to California for the, you know, for just a little visit for the summer.

And then and that's when this whole thing of divorce started.

My wife just kind of pulled me in.

She was, you know, we were in this little apartment we were renting that we were going to be there for, you know, a couple of months, and she just said, uh, I I'm done.

And then that's when the whole everything kicked off.

That's when the whole emotional toll started.

SPEAKER_01: So wow.

Wow, wow, wow.

And now let me ask you, because I know at some point in your story you you had a stroke.

So was that so the stroke was that that was what several years before all of this?

SPEAKER_02: The stroke was two yeah, two years before.

SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.

So now now tell me about that.

Tell me about the stroke.

What happened?

SPEAKER_02: You know, because I mean you're you're the greatest thing of the stroke is I don't remember.

I'm just joking.

There are you are too much, man.

You're too much.

The stroke was quite humbling.

And it's in that moment when you realize, like, wow, that was merely equivalent to someone just walking up to a light switch and going, okay, we're going to do a little reset, boom.

And it's click and stroke is on.

So I'd been in the process.

We were moving houses and and um I had done a little bit of remodeling and running really hard.

Getting the new house ready and had been staying at a friend's little cottage.

And then my family came.

We all moved in and we'd been there maybe a night or two.

And then we were planning to go surfing the next morning.

And I kind of woke up that morning and I just went, I need to go down to my friend's cottage and put that back in order.

And I was just felt a little off.

So I told my son, I was like, Well, you should have mom take you.

And I said, I'm just gonna go, I'm gonna go down to Cole's and make sure that's all good and just kind of hang.

So I'm down at his house.

Nobody knows where I am.

And I'm on the phone with my friend Cole, who owns the house.

And I say, Hey, I'm just making sure everything's good.

I'm locking up.

Thanks for letting me, you know, use the place.

And then all of a sudden I hear him screaming at me, quit, quit messing around.

What's wrong with you?

And I realize then, you know, I'm I'm literally, I'm like, and he's like, stop messing.

You know, because I I mean I do joke around a lot.

SPEAKER_00: So yeah.

SPEAKER_02: And he's like, he's like, you stop that.

And I and then he realizes I'm not.

Like I'm completely just, you know, I can't talk.

And so uh I didn't fully I don't remember, I just remember I was like, I I gotta sit down.

Like things, my whole body was was changing at that moment.

Like I've gotta lay down and and I'm a really fit guy, and I'd been doing like these big open ocean races, you know, on my stand-up board and surf every day, work out, meditate.

Like, you know, I I'm pretty much been vegan, plant-based for a really long time.

And so I'm you know, at that point, really, I was in, I was in maximum shape, pretty cut.

And when I'm on this couch realizing nobody knows where I am, and I was in my split second, I was like, you gotta get two words out that your that my friend could actually hear.

And so I just concentrated as hard as I could, and I just told him, like, you know, I just said, call my wife, you know, call Linda.

And so uh, and then I realized I had a friend, I knew he was going to work and would be passing by.

So I tried calling him and it was just inaudible.

He he was couldn't make out what that what I was saying, and and so my and where my son and had gone surfing, cell reception is not so great.

But my buddy Cole had gotten through to my wife and she called an ambulance.

And by the time everyone got there, the ambulance came and you know, and I I don't do drugs or drink, coffee is the only vice.

And so, you know, they're all looking at me like, here's this, you know, I'm six foot four, you know, I'm about 2'10, and I'm just lying there.

I don't even think I had a shirt on.

And and they're like, Are you sure you're not on drugs?

And I'm like, you know, and I can't talk.

And now I'm frustrated because I'm like thinking to myself, you guys are asking me if I'm on drugs, there's something else going on here.

Like, I need help.

And so load me up in an ambulance.

And probably, you know, one of the hardest moments as a dad is to so as to be, you know, flat on your back in the back of an ambulance and look out and see your kids, you know, look at you and you're like, there's nothing you can do.

So it's about a from my side of the island to the hospital is about an hour ride.

And, you know, it was in that moment that it's not that you you go, God help me.

You do, but I start talking to angels and I bring in everybody I can to go, hey, I need help.

And uh so with that became, you know, like your mind control comes into play or minded, and and it's kind of how I operate is to take the mind and go, you gotta start fixing yourself now.

So with that, I I was fortunate because I was able to able to roll in.

There was nobody in nobody in the emergency room.

Nobody.

I was the only one.

So the whole team there, the focus, you know, it was a lucky day.

And so that began, you know, just really solidifying my thought process that even as a kid, visualizing what you want out of life, where you want to be.

Well, I knew I didn't want to stay in that state of mind.

Obviously, sometimes in life, some things are completely out, or a lot of times things are completely out of our control.

But you do everything with your mind to get back where you want to be and what you choose to be.

And sometimes we have to accept and we gotta forgive.

And so, you know, there were definitely uh there was a moment, I don't know what happened.

I was being wheeled.

I'd had every test going to figure out the stroke, which they did eventually figure out why.

But at one point I was being wheeled.

I remember going through this dark hallway.

So I was going through this dark hallway, and then I signaled to the nurse, his name was David.

I was like, David, I'm going down, man.

I can feel it.

And I I don't I don't know really know what happened in that moment.

I just know it was super peaceful.

And when I came to, they were standing over me with those paddle things, and I, and they were like, you know, like there was a moment of celebration.

And so, you know, I spent some time rehabbing myself, went back to, you know, I went, I went back to the ER kind of hard-headed.

So through my hard-headedness, you know, I I, you know, thinking I can just overcome this in a week, you know, I or a month or whatever, I I definitely was not very intelligent how I went about it and pushed myself really, really hard.

And I remember at one point, like I I couldn't even walk a couple of steps without just truly couldn't get my breath, couldn't, you know, like it was really went to a doctor and he was like, you have two choices.

You can listen to me or you can die.

So, you know, that that kind of wakes you up.

And so he said, Um, you're gonna, you know, call somebody where I'm calling an ambulance, you're going back to ER.

So anyway, so I took things a little more serious after that and realized that I wasn't Superman.

And uh my mindset changed, I think, after that.

I mean, I know it did, and it gave me a greater just looked at life differently, and you looked at it and you went, You gotta do everything that you can possibly do and enjoy.

That's a lot of talking, Kevin, to your turn.

SPEAKER_01: No, man.

No, of course, dude.

It's such a it's such a deep story.

And and I can only imagine in for anybody, any of us who you're living life.

Life's going fine, everything's going good, you're you're you're for the most part healthy, things are going good.

And then all of a sudden, just totally out of the blue, something happens.

And something totally out of your control that completely just turns your life, the world, completely upside down.

And and I and I'm sitting here and I'm I'm thinking of you, and I'm thinking of the little bit that I know about you from the little bit that I've talked to you so far.

And and I'm I'm listening to this guy who you've been doing all these crazy things, adventurous things, and in a fit guy and living life, and then to literally be just knocked to your knees to have your very, the very speech taken from you, to have the very thing of just being able to stand and and move on your own taken from you.

And I just am sitting there thinking, like, in in your words as you're talking, you can feel the pain, the struggle, the internal struggle that you had to be going through.

And I can't help but wonder like, how long did the worst of it continue?

I mean, I don't like what what are like how long did it take you to recover?

Because I know you're back, you know, fully fit and stuff.

I mean, what was that process?

SPEAKER_02: My physical side to things like getting back to walking and came really quickly.

It was it was the mental.

I struggled a lot with memory, was the biggest part.

And my son came to me.

We were we were laughing one day about this, it was recent, and he we had some jokes going on, and and um he said, you know, I've always wondered, like, why'd you have all those yellow sticky notes all over your dash when I was a kid?

And I said, that's how I knew to pick you up from school and get you where you need to be.

Because I had no memory.

I had zero.

I get back out of the driveway, drive down the street, and then realize I don't really know what I'm supposed to do today, and then have to go back home and figure it out.

And so uh I still struggle.

Here we, you know, here we are, what, nine years later, and I still I still struggle some with my memory, but I know now I can laugh about it.

I'm just like, it's okay.

Of course, like you don't have to remember everything.

And everybody's like, well, you're in your 50s.

I'm like, yeah, but I didn't have this before.

Like I do have selective memory, no doubt about it.

So um but anyway, so I, you know, like in in that time period, I was, you know, flying airplanes, riding my motorcycle a lot.

I was riding, I love to shoot, I'm a photographer, and I I couldn't remember anything.

I could go, I'd go to write a sentence and have this great thought, which every writer goes through.

You have a great thought and then you go to write it down, you can't remember, but I truly couldn't remember.

So it's retraining yourself to say, hey, you're not gonna remember it, so do it while you can.

But in the in the first year, maybe two years, it didn't matter if I tried to write it down or not.

I I just it just sometimes just didn't come.

And it could be within a split second.

You could have that great thought and a split second later, gone.

SPEAKER_01: So completely.

Definitely, definitely.

Now, now, in terms of talking about writing and stuff, when when what made you decide to write this book?

I mean, I know we talked about when you were when you were cycling in Canada and stuff, but I mean, to to have thoughts of of what's going on in life, and then to take those thoughts and turn them into words that form sentences that put together an entire book, what what was that?

Do you think?

Do you even know?

SPEAKER_02: What I would say it is, is it it was the universe saying, you have a story that can help others.

And I was, yes, I lived through, although the book is fiction, I've lived through an extreme amount of those stories.

And, you know, I get up at three in the morning when I'm when I'm writing, and you're still half asleep.

You can drink all the coffee you want, but you're still half asleep.

And I always say that's my dream time.

And that's just when I allow the universe to put the pen in my hand, because I write pen to yellow pad, and then I put it into the computer.

So I just allow the universe to go.

I just say, hey man, I'm yours.

Let's do it.

And so that's the universe talking through me.

So I I give all the credit to the universe, and I listen to Jackson Brown same same few albums.

So I always say, Jackson Brown and I've written.

We've written a lot of stuff together.

And I always think to myself, how can I listen to this same album over again?

But I'm just like, it works.

There's something in it that just triggers and we just go.

SPEAKER_01: So oh my gosh, man, you're so awesome.

You're so awesome.

Now, now I want to ask you, because I know you living there, there in Hawaii.

I mean, you're blessed with not only a beautiful destination, but a very powerful, very spiritual place.

And you shared with me that you, you and your dog, you guys go on a walk up the mountain every morning.

Is that right?

SPEAKER_02: We do.

Uh typical day for me is to get up, get up early, have coffee.

If I'm riding, then I write.

And then I I try to work out, go surf, and then uh somewhere either, you know, middle of the morning or middle of the afternoon, I'll tell you, I have two dogs, I'll I'll take those guys on a walk.

And we walk up through the mountains.

It used to be all sugarcane fields, but they've now turned into uh coffee fields.

And then we get further up into the mountains.

And what I like to do is I I when I go up in the mountains, or maybe someone needs help on an energetic level that I that's come into my life for a split second, or it's family members.

I do a little prayer walk and say prayers for people and try to send some healing strength and to them.

And and the the energy of the mountains behind my house is just unreal.

And that's really where I've I've healed myself on these walks and on the, you know, it would the day I started writing the book is when I was coming back down the mountains, and I realized, and this was like 16 months after my wife had asked me for divorces, is when I realized I had accepted divorce, but I hadn't forgiven her.

And and it was it was a revelation.

I hands were on my knees, I had, you know, crocodile tears just streaming from my face, and dogs just sitting at my feet, like, what's wrong, Daddy?

What's wrong?

You know, and and um, and it was at that moment that I realized it's time to write and it's time to get this all out, and it's time to be happy and find the joy and the love in life.

So the the power of the mountains, I I go up there every day and just say thank you.

Like that's the place where I give all my gratitude to say thank you.

SPEAKER_01: So that's that's so beautiful.

That's so beautiful.

And I that's just yeah, that's so amazing.

Now, I'm curious, your book.

Tell me a little bit about your book.

What what's the name of it and what is it about?

SPEAKER_02: The name of the book is Westphalia.

SPEAKER_01: Where did that name come from?

What does that mean?

SPEAKER_02: I don't know.

I have this, I have this passion, like I've and I've never done it.

Like I love going camping and and and I'm pretty raw with camping.

I've I've hiked north to south and south to north in the Grand Canyon, and you take all your food and back back, but I've never, you know, like I've I've always wanted to just have a van and be able to go camping.

And I had a have a good friend and we'd take the kids camping, and I'd always have a tent.

And then he had a Westphalia, had to pop up, and we'd pull up, you know, and unload surfboards, and he'd just like pop the top and he'd be ready to go.

And then here I am, struggling with my tent and you know, trying to get kids situated.

And I'm like, that's the way to do it.

So so I I've always just had this infatuation with them.

And so that's where the name comes from.

And also when I was in Banff getting ready to ride to Jasper, Canada was celebrating, I don't remember how many years, but celebrating their country.

And there was this really old Westphalia van, had all this crap, you know, stacked on top of it.

And it was a great photo.

And I took a picture.

And then later I was like, that's the cover for the book.

I'm gonna do Westphalia, and I'm gonna make it an you know, adventure book.

And and um then I end up making the character, the character's name in the book is Westphalia.

And so, you know, so West relives and goes deep within himself, and uh, you know, he gets punched in the gut by life.

And he's forced to figure out what's happened in the past, the present, and to create a new future for himself.

And within that, there's a guide that comes into play, and his name is Charlie, and Charlie helps guide him.

And Charlie just has this ability to be there when Wes needs him.

But if Wes rejects his help, he doesn't stay and help.

He moves on.

He waits for Wes to receive his help.

So, you know, the book takes you on this crazy adventure, and you've got surfing and motorcycle riding and wingsuit flying and going into caves and and uh cleansing yourself through a kelp forest and and then you know, it it's all dream-based.

So it dives deep into my, or it dives deep into West's childhood and dealing with his father and the emotional toll that had on him and and clearing the way to to find himself and to find peace, joy, and love.

SPEAKER_01: Wow.

I'm gonna imagine though that there's uh probably a very uh good parallel between West and yourself.

SPEAKER_02: It's pretty good, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: Yeah.

So let let me ask you this is the guide in West's life the same guide in your own life?

SPEAKER_02: That's a good question.

And my editor asked me at the end.

She was like, Who who's Charlie?

And I don't know.

I when I bring Charlie up, I get really emotional.

SPEAKER_01: Okay, well and so uh I've I feel like I've already taken you through an emotional wreck.

SPEAKER_02: That's right.

It's you know what?

It's just all part of it.

But you know, Charlie is probably kind of my alter ego.

And then Charlie's also this culmination of all the great people that I've been able to learn so much from about life and how to navigate life.

So he's a piece of everyone.

SPEAKER_01: That's awesome.

That's awesome.

Well, I want to ask you one last question.

Sure.

And then if you have anything else more you need to say, you say it.

But I got one last question for you.

And that is what would you say to somebody who's listening to this podcast?

And maybe they're going through some stuff.

Maybe they recently separated from their spouse.

Maybe they had something come up medically, maybe, maybe a a similar situation like yours or mine or anything, going through something bad in life.

What piece of advice would you give to that person?

SPEAKER_02: You kind of struck me there when you when you bring yourself into that, because there's two sides to that.

And one being for for you, it'd be really hard for me to say, hey, nothing lasts forever.

But for you, it, you know, you had a huge change and you've you told a remarkable story about going into Los Angeles and learning how to do the clicks to create vision, but you didn't get your true sight back.

So to tell somebody that nothing lasts forever, that's that's just not gonna, that's not gonna fly in your case.

You learn to adapt.

A guy going through, or a girl, whoever, going through divorce and the emotional toll of, you know, the thought of losing your kids and those things, it is temporary.

And what I would say is on that level, your emotions are temporary and you need to address them.

Because if you suffocate them, you'll never allow yourself to experience true joy and love in life.

So I always, like I tell my kids, write it down.

Write that letter to that person that's you know that you feel you need to say something to and figure out what you want to get out of that.

What do you want from it?

What's what's your end goal?

Set your intention, and then you got to keep moving forward.

And there's no doubt, dude, my time, yeah, I there were plenty of days.

I didn't get out of bed.

And divorce was really embarrassing for me.

And but you can get through it.

It's a temporary moment in life that you can get through, create a mantra for yourself, and that's where you bring in your I ams, which is your which I am.

I'm not a big Bible guy, so someone will correct me on this, but I am is the source of God, and you you need that.

And so you bring in the I am, I am happy.

You may not think you're happy at the moment, but you can tell yourself, I am happy, I am love, and bring all that in and keep repeating it and keep repeating it, and just know you're gonna get through it.

It's gonna happen for you.

SPEAKER_01: That's awesome, man.

Thank you so much.

Thank you so, so much.

And and for everyone listening, I highly recommend his book.

I'm gonna leave all the links in the show notes where you can find it and get your copy, either a regular book or an audio version of the book, my personal favorite.

And um thanks, Cov.

Of course, man.

And uh so, man, thank you again.

And you're you're an awesome guy to talk to.

And I can say with with uh without a shadow of a doubt that at some point in time I'm gonna have to have you back on again because uh you have so much to share, so much goodness, and you have a good heart, man.

And uh I'm uh really blessed to have you on my podcast.

SPEAKER_02: I'm so happy to be here, so thank you.

We can we can tell motorcycle stories next time.

SPEAKER_01: That sounds good, man.

Sounds good.

I promise next time we'll we won't go quite so deep, you know.

SPEAKER_02: That's that's all part of it, right?

SPEAKER_01: So it is, it is.

It it all it all ties into it because every everything in life, it all ties in and it and it creates our whole beautiful story of life.

SPEAKER_02: It does.

That's what life is all about.

SPEAKER_01: Awesome.

Well, man, thank you.

And to all of you listening, thank you so much.

And like I said, don't forget to check out those show notes where you can find information to uh get your copy of his book.

Thank you.

And that's the lowdown with Kevin Lowe.

I hope today's episode inspired you, motivated you, and excited you to get out and enjoy life, no matter what obstacles may be standing in the way.