Unexpected: Peak Experiences Along the Road Less Traveled

UNEXPECTED is the memoir of a totally unpredictable life. The author, a medical doctor with a bachelor's degree from Princeton, found himself in a world that he could not have foreseen. He got caught up in the turmoil of the 1960s, dealing with the military draft, and being sent to Vietnam as an "obligated volunteer." But this was only the beginning of a subsequent lifetime of twists and turns that he could not have dreamed would ever happen. It was like living many lifetimes in the space of one lifespan. The author records his many peak experiences in first-person essays that not only capture the flavor of the times but also the feeling of actually being there, whether jumping out of airplanes, briefing the top general of a major South American country, or having a number of near-death experiences. Not all the vignettes concern such adrenaline-stimulating episodes; others cover such sublime experiences as hooking a sailfish in the Sea of Cortez or restoring - and subsequently living in - a stone cottage in southwest France. The essays are grouped by subject matter but can be read in any order because each is a standalone. They start with the jeremiad "Why I Hated Princeton" and end with the coda "Time and Chance." They strike the book's major theme - wisdom, or lack of it. The groupings themselves start with "Beneath the White Coat," which deals with the often shocking realities of the world of medicine. The vignettes provide glimpses that alternate between being heart rending and heartwarming. "Join the Army and..." is more than just a recruiting poster's advertising claim. Join the author as he whisks you to such places as northern Alaska in the wintertime, Saudi Arabia in the summertime, and the jungles of Brazil. The genesis of the book was the collection of memories the author had about his "Brushes With Death." These were the most poignant memories of his life. They were so deeply etched in his mind that there was little difficulty in retrieving them after de