I have long been fascinated by the seven-year life cycle, which seems to be a part of the Indian lore. I have found these cycles to be rather close to the important stages in my own life, and I am therefore very much aware that the next cycle of seven years will start in less than six months, when I will turn sixty-three. And thus I was not surprised this afternoon when I found myself jotting down the most important years in my adult life and connecting them to the seven cycles in an increasingly complex diagram that spread over an entire page.

The period from the ages of twenty-one to twenty-eight (1967-1974) can be best described by the word “revolution.” No matter how brief, the 1968 student uprising in Belgrade was undoubtedly one of the most important events in my life. Having finished my undergraduate education in 1969, and having served in the army from 1969 to 1970, the rest of this period I spent studying in the States. I was very serious about my graduate studies at Harvard and MIT, but much of my time was still dedicated to figuring out how to turn the world upside down.

The bulk of the period from twenty-eight to thirty-five (1974-1981) I spent in Slovenia. “Profession” was the key word of the period, but revolution certainly came a close second. Having gotten my doctorate in 1975, I moved to Slovenia the same year, and stayed there through 1979, when I returned to the States. My professional work took much of my time and energy, but I was still deeply concerned with the critique of the world in which I lived, albeit from a revolutionary perspective.

Between the ages of thirty-five and forty-two (1981-1988) I was fully dedicated to economics. “Science” would be the best word for these years, for mathematics was my main tool of economic analysis. Much of this period I taught at MIT, and at the time it seemed I was in perfect bliss. Important results in economics appeared to be within my reach, and I felt I was unto something truly important.

From forty-two to forty-nine (1988-1995) my interests switched quite radically. In 1989 I decided to leave the States, and I moved to England in 1990. The key word of the period was “family.” Even though I was still involved with science, much of my time was dedicated to nursing my second family along. Having failed quite miserably the first time around, I did my best to do better this time. In 1993 my parents fled to England from the war in Yugoslavia, and my dedication to family affairs only grew with their arrival.

The period from the ages of forty-nine to fifty-six (1995-2002) was dedicated mostly to “art.” Family still played an important part in my life, and my art revolved around the family, but the emphasis nonetheless shifted from the former to the latter. Art was uppermost on my mind close to the end of this cycle, and once again I felt that I had a chance of giving it a new lease on life. I was in England all of these years, but my second family fell apart in 2000. I decided to retire in 2001, and I bought a house in Croatia in 2002.

Between the ages of fifty-six and sixty-three (2002-2009) I will have lived in Motovun almost the entire period. And the name of the hilltown is the best word to describe these years. I went as far as to call it the center of the world, which I took almost literally. Having fallen in love with Motovun hook, line, and sinker, I dedicated nearly all of my energies to its past, present, and future. But that life cycle seems to be behind me already.

And now I am facing the tenth seven-year cycle of my life (2009-2016). At this moment I cannot be sure where I will spend the bulk of this period, but the word that will describe it best is surely “yoga.” The place will therefore matter ever less as years go by. Perhaps I will stay in Motovun, but I cannot be sure about that, for much will depend on the future development of the town and its surroundings. At any rate, yoga will occupy me ever more. It is hard to tell how the coming cycle will end, but I do have high hopes for it. If everything goes well, the cycles will gradually lose their meaning.