log entry 006

The Rainbow, the Unicorn...

Sometimes life whispers before it shouts.

Dundee, Scotland

I've been wondering whether to tell this story. Not because I'm embarrassed by it. Quite the opposite. I'm just aware that it sounds...Well...A little unbelievable.

If somebody else had told me this a few years ago, I'd probably have smiled politely and thought..."That's a lovely story..." So I'm not asking you to believe anything. I'm simply telling you exactly what happened. You can decide what you make of it.

This was one of my very first visits to Dundee, other than bringing touring shows through the city. I'd driven all the way from Cheltenham the previous day. It had been a long journey. By the time I arrived, it was dark, I was exhausted, checked into the Apex Hotel, grabbed something to eat and went straight to bed. I hadn't seen the city. I hadn't walked along the waterfront. In fact...I had absolutely no idea what was outside my hotel window.

The following morning, I woke up, made myself a coffee and wandered over to the curtains. As I pulled them open, the first thing I saw was an old ship quietly moored in the City Quay below. I remember smiling. "Well... that's a nice surprise." At that moment, I had absolutely no idea what she was called.

Later, I discovered she was The Unicorn.

She looked magnificent. Strong. Timeless. Like she'd spent centuries quietly watching the world change around her. As I stood there looking out across the quay towards the River Tay, I noticed something else. On the opposite side of the river, it was raining. But over Dundee... A huge rainbow stretched across the sky. It appeared to land somewhere around an old clock tower on the opposite side of the quay. I had no idea that the building beside that clock tower was the Dundee Chamber of Commerce, and that there was another building right beside it called Waters Edge. I didn't know anything about it. But curiosity has always had a habit of getting me into trouble. Or leading me somewhere interesting. I remember saying to myself..."I wonder what's over there?"

So, I walked over to City Quay. The first stop was the ship. I walked around her, looked up at her name...The Unicorn. That made me smile. Then I carried on walking towards where the rainbow seemed to touch the ground. It couldn't have been more than five minutes. When I reached the building beside the clock tower, something unexpected happened. The doors opened automatically. I smiled again. Funny how little things stay with you. I walked inside. A gentleman greeted me. "Hi... I'm Chris." We got chatting. At that point, I had absolutely no idea who Chris van der Kuyl was. Nor did I know that I was standing inside the home of 4J Studios, the company behind Minecraft. I certainly didn't know that the CoSTAR Realtime Lab was there, too. I knew of CoSTAR because House of Tours Global had an office beside their studios at Production Park in Wakefield. I just had no idea they also had a home here in Dundee.

Looking back now...

It's incredible how one small decision can change everything. Had I stayed in my hotel...Had I gone for breakfast instead...Had I ignored that little voice telling me to go for a walk... None of what followed might ever have happened. The following day, I went exploring again. That's when I found Discovery.

The moment I saw her...Everything stopped. Suddenly, I wasn't a fifty-something bloke standing on Dundee's waterfront. I was a Scout again. Back in 1977. Standing aboard Discovery during the Queen's Silver Jubilee year while she was moored on the Thames. Memories I'd forgotten I even had came flooding back. I stood there for a long time. Just taking it all in.

Sometimes life joins the dots so quietly that you only notice when you stop long enough to look backwards. When I got back to my hotel room...I closed the door behind me...Sat down...And cried. Not because I was sad. Not because I was lonely. Not because I was frightened. Quite the opposite. For the first time in years...I felt hope. Real hope.

After everything I'd been through with my physical health. After the battles with my mental health. After years of chasing opportunities that never quite materialised. After years of believing promises made by people whose agendas didn't always match my own. Something felt different.

Everyone who knows me has heard me say the same thing over the years. Usually with a smile. Usually, after another impossible project. Another false promise. Another dream that never quite happened. I'd laugh and say...

"I'm sick and tired of chasing rainbows and hunting unicorns."

It became one of those phrases people associated with me. Yet on that morning... There they both were. The rainbow. And The Unicorn. I actually laughed through the tears. Not because I thought the universe was trying to send me a message. Because life has an incredible sense of humour.

Months later, I discovered something else that made me laugh even harder. Scotland's national animal is a bloody unicorn.

Honestly...

You couldn't make it up. Looking back now... I don't think the rainbow changed my life. I don't think The Unicorn changed my life. Curiosity changed my life. The rainbow simply gave me a reason to go for a walk. That walk led me to Waters Edge. Waters Edge led me to extraordinary people. Those people are now helping shape Terra Nueva. And Terra Nueva finally has somewhere to belong. Maybe that's what this Journal is really about. Not rainbows. Not unicorns. Hope.

Because sometimes...

After years of chasing what always seemed just out of reach... Life quietly reminds you that maybe...Just maybe... You don't have to chase anymore. Maybe you've already arrived.

The journey continues... 🌍

Next Log:Forty Years on the Road

Stu