Chapter 1

I was 42 years old, and it was my wedding day. My best man had stood up to do his speech and he started by saying, "Jim's life so far has been that of an action man. He has done so many exciting things in his time." I sat there, and for perhaps the first time reflected back and decided that it was at least partially true, in amongst all the ordinary stuff there were some extraordinary things, which to me at the time did not seem to be anything special. I think and hope that most people can look back at some events in their lives and be able to say, "Wow that was amazing", and that's how it was for me.

As well as other things, my list of extraordinary includes skydiving, ocean racing, flying, scuba diving, skiing and travelling. Diplomatically, I could say that my adventures were just to occupy myself while I was waiting for Ruth to turn up, but the truth is more like there was a degree of adventure was in my blood, and I had to get it out of my system. Now, I am sitting on the high table with Ruth next to me and I was about to start another adventure, and things would never be the same.

My life, as with most people, is a story of parts, let's call them seasons, and this one is about my life until everything changed (for the better) on that day in December 2001.

Chapter 1: Introduction.