Rationally believing that his dreams were far out of reach, he settled for an ordinary timeline: Finish high school, go to college, work in family retail business, and get married. It was a plan to settle in early and easy. " It didn't go that way."

As the years went on, his timeline swerved in ways he had never imagined, eluding the settled life he believed he would just fall into. Every strategy to get back on track--wife, kids, backyard barbecues--led to unexpected adventures, narrow escapes, and professional success. However, when he reached the age of forty-seven and still...