As a filmmaker, writer, van-life traveler, husband, father, and now grandfather, all of these attributes have given me more profound and life-saving pleasures than I ever could have imagined. My writings have become more assertive and vigorous, upholding strong positions on important matters. I stand up for what I profoundly believe in. As people, we need to ask hard questions of politicians, scientists, and all the scholars who drive socio-political agendas. And, more than ever, we need to stand together as humans. Life has been good to me and my family. My dream is that it can continue to be good for all.

A MOMENT IN TIME

For so long, death has lurked at every moment. At last, the day seems to have come. A searing pain tears through my left arm, sharp and relentless. My hands are clammy, my chest stings. This is it—I’m going to die, truly. I search for the tunnel of death, hoping to see my life flash before me, but there’s nothing—only this cat staring at me, its gaze mocking, as if whispering:
“I have seven lives.”
My heart pounds furiously, racing like a pedal slammed to the floor. I sit down and look up at the sky. My wish to choose the moment and place of my end is coming true. Through tear-filled eyes, I glimpse a butterfly’s shadow on a rosebush branch. The metamorphosis has begun; my death is near. My breaths grow shallow, I cough, I retch. I collapse backward, dizzy, and black out. Then I wake. It’ll be for another time, damn it.

DANIEL GERVAIS