As far as my daily routines were concerned, there were none to speak of beyond those universally dictated by nature and therefore unavoidable. Otherwise, I followed none of the regulatory habits that civilized and cultured people sometimes adopt when they have some leisure time. Planned schedules for enjoyment like rising at dawn and doing a little yoga before a jog along the beach: followed by a hearty breakfast, a planned visit here and there, lunch, a short siesta, a swim, a book and a deckchair under the palms, an aperitif, dinner, and a show in town: followed finally by a bit of mood music and a nightcap before retiring for the night.

Forget it, my days were nothing like that. There was not a single civilizing aspect to my daily activities; no obligations to fulfill, no timely duties to perform, and no personal commitments to be honored. I was not involved in appeasing any Gods or fighting for any causes. So was I really as free and footloose as I am making out to be? Yes, certainly, but with limitations. If my money ran out, food and shelter would become a problem, and when my allotted time expired after a couple of months, I would have to leave Paradise.

Anyway, I was certainly living in the moment, free or not, and didn’t have to organize my days with wearisome, obsolete routines or the repetition of tried-and-proven practices, nor suffer the procrastination that comes from boredom and apathy. The days just came and went, “sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof”, one day at a time.

Every day was a fresh experience. I got up, went here and there as dictated by the flow of events, and at the end of the day, when tiredness came, I lay down and slept, just as nature intended we should do. Sounds like the life of a dog, doesn’t it, but altogether with less freedom. A happy dog, though with more than its nose to provide information on the desirable and undesirable. That I was actually freer than a dog will become evident as the facts unfold and the ramifications of cause and effect become evident in time. In other words, when you hear of the impact of Paradise on the cabbage, you will be amazed. If you are not, it will be because I have failed to communicate the extraordinary intensity and magic of my experiences.