2025 Retrospect

2025 was a meaningful year for me.

My word for the year was CLARITY, and it came in all kinds of beautiful ways.

• Clarity from new growth and expansion.
• Clarity from so many amazing experiences.
• Clarity from deeper conviction and awareness.

Below is my story of 2025 –

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The beginning of the year was packed with birthdays and celebrations, as usual. Everest turned 9, Sepia turned 7, and I turned 40 – a new milestone.

40 felt different.

I wrote a separate post about it:
40 Trips Around the Sun

I was also pleasantly surprised by Gabrielle and my great friend, Eric. They secretly coordinated Eric’s visit without my knowing!

FRD Chief Transformation Officer

In February I stepped into a new role with Front Row Dads as Chief Transformation Officer. I also wrote about this in detail here:
FRD Chief Transformation Officer

This was a meaningful milestone given my relationship and commitment to FRD over the last 6 years. More on that later.

Basketball and Snowboarding

The rest of Winter was consumed with Everest’s basketball games, which I coached, and a mix of snowboarding and time with friends.

My brother and I got some quality together at Breckenridge, Vail and Beaver Creek. In March I also picked up my first “Mellie” – which is a Colorado rights of passage. These are locally famous in Colorado due to the unique story of Melanzana in Leadville, CO.

It was a nice winter with plenty of snow to enjoy the “quiet” season.

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Spring

Spring kicked off with a Jafarian adventure to Hawaii!

Hawaii Adventure

This was a trip we’ve been planning for years – a place that both Gabrielle and I have had on our travel list for years. We finally made it happen and 2025 was our first official visit to the island. We chose to explore Ohahue and it was epic.

Some of our Hawaii highlights:

• Watching my kiddos thrive on the beach while Gabrielle and I experienced some rest.
• Hiking and exploring the lush rainforests.
• Climbing a 1,000+ step incline to the top of Koko Crater as a family!
• Learning about Polynesian culture and history.

Hawaii is a beautiful place. It’s rich in culture, nature and spirit. I’m sure we’ll head back again sometime soon.

FRD Engage & Spring Challenge

In April I helped launch a new program through Front Row Dads called FRD ENGAGE – a 5-week online learning journey. This guided our members through some new concepts and philosophies, plus challenged them to do [IRL] “in real life” exercises at home.

A few weeks later we also launched our Spring “Reset” Challenge, which included 30 days of:

• 7 Hours of Sleep 😴
• 1 Gallon of Water💧
• 8,000 Steps 👣
• 100 Push-ups 💪
• Honor a clean Diet 🥗
• BONUS = Hours Fasted 🔄

This was a great reset for me and many of the guys who chose to participate.

FRD Band Retreat

In May, I got to meet up with FRD band for our 2nd annual in-person retreat. We went to Arkansas for some quality time together in nature, friendship and deeper brotherhood. These men continue to support me in beautiful ways.

Milwaukee with Hemad

Later in May the Jafarians headed to Milwaukee to visit with Hemad, his wife Barbie, and his newborn son, Julian! He was an adorable 3 months old, and we enjoyed seeing some of his early moments.

We also found some fun nature to explore around the Wisconsin Dells.

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Summer

The summer was a dynamic wave of adventure.

FRD Summer Summit

It started with the Front Row Dads 2025 Summer Summit. I led this 9-man retreat in Breckenridge with some extraordinary guys. It was a great mix of learning, time in nature, and profound mens work. These men reconnected with their hearts in ways I cannot easily describe.

JCN Family Adventure

A couple weeks later my [entire] family headed to the Northeast for our 2nd Full Family adventure – now named the “JCN” Adventure – for Jafarians, Cardwells and Noonans. This included both sides of our families, including some new additions since the last adventure to Guatemala, with a grand total of 22 humans.

This trip was truly epic.

I get emotional just thinking about the time together, enjoying the private lake / quarry, meals, laughs and fun. As I often tell my FRD buddies, this is some of my greatest work – leading my family to meaningful gatherings like this.

• These are the experiences that really matter. We’ll be telling stories about this trip for years to come.
• This is the real work my family remember. In many ways, this is what makes all the other “work” worthwhile.
• And these are the trips I want to leave as my legacy. If there’s anything I want to give or offer my family – it’s a deeper intention around creating quality time together.

Boston & Cape Code

After 5 days of family immersion, the Jafarian clan headed down to Boston to explore the city and Cape Code for a few days. This was our first time in Boston together and we had a really great time. We explored some major landmarks, including the Boston Tea Party museum, which was fun and educational.

I walked around Boston for hours and found myself intrigued by all the history. It played such an important role in our country’s formation and independence. I was also inspired by the MIT campus and the energy of academia.

Boston is a pretty cool place.

Family 14er & Camping

Landing home from our family adventure quickly shifted into Gabrielle’s 41st birthday. We chose to camp and climb a 14er to celebrate her! We chose Huron Peak and had a great start as the sun came up around 6am.

However, mother nature had other plans that day. We didn’t summit the 14er due to dangerous weather, which was a bummer… but we “summited” as a family with a peak experience in nature together. There’s nothing quite like camping for the soul.

A couple weeks later it was time for me to lead some other humans up a mountain.

FRD Colorado Adventure

Six Front Row Dads came out for the 2025 Colorado Adventure. We tested ourselves physically, emotionally and spiritually.

• We hiked many miles.
• We engaged with water via cliff jumping and paddle boarding.
• We enjoyed time away from humans in one of the 10th Mountain Division huts.
• And then climbed Mt Yale – 14,200 feet.

It was a really special and nourishing experience, and the last of its kind (for now). I told the FRD community I’m going to take a break from this particular experience.

Knight Family Reunion

A few weeks later, my final summer adventure took place back in Breckenridge with my mom’s side of the family. Three of her siblings came out for a few days of fun and connection. They live in different parts of the country, so it’s awesome to see them still create time to be together.

At this point you’d think I was ready for some rest! Yet the mountains were still calling me…

• I did a solo climb up Mt Columbia, starting at 3am. It was so beautiful.
• I hosted Jon out in Vail for a 2-day FRD leadership retreat. We had a great time connecting and planning the future of FRD.
• Then I took on “The Decalibron” with Hemad – a round trip adventure tagging three 14er summits.

It seems I still can’t get quite enough mountain time.

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Fall

The Fall kicked off with Sepia’s soccer season (pun intended). This is her 2nd year with the same team and she’s enjoying the sport. She also scored her first goal this year!

Father / Son Wilderness Trip

In late September, Everest and I flew out to Idaho for a father/son wilderness trip with 8 other dads and their boys. This experience was led by Tim Corcoran and his team at Twin Eagles. It was one of the most extraordinary events I’ve ever attended and participated in.

I wrote a full recap of the experience here:
Father & Son Wilderness Trip

Both Everest and I came home nourished and more connected in beautiful ways.

Glenwood Springs Family Adventure

A few weeks later we headed to Glenwood Springs for the long Fall break weekend. This was our first time to GS as a full family and everyone loved it. Aside from some great weather, we enjoyed:

• A hike up to Hanging Lake
• A trip to the Adventure Park
• Soaking in the hot springs
• And immersion into the caves

We had so much fun that we plan to make this an annual trip with more friends and family in the coming years. It was a great reminder that you don’t have to travel far and wide to have an adventure.

FRD Fall VIP Retreat

In late October I flew out to the Catskills, NY for our Fall VIP retreat – a gathering of 33 men, most of which I know well or have known for many years now. This is our more intimate event which I had the honor of facilitating and leading this year with the help of my great friend, Mike Wagner.

This one was special. I described it as…

• Immersion with NATURE and brotherhood.
• Integration of our MIND’s gifts and capacity.
• Challenge of our BODY’s range and wisdom.
• Connection to our SOUL’s knowing and guidance.

I was deeply impacted by this experience through servant leadership, time in nature, expansive courage and connection with other amazing men.

The guys honored me by awarding me the MVB (most valuable brother) – which I did not expect. Normally you cannot award this to the event facilitator, but they broke the rules anyway, and I accepted it reluctantly. I have an epic axe to prove it.

Later in the Fall we enjoyed more time outside, some time with friends and family visiting, plus some final hiking before winter.

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Winter

STL for Thanksgiving

We made a trip back to STL for Thanksgiving, which is always nice. This time around Gabrielle and I took the kids to the arch, which we hadn’t visited in years! It was fun to explore and re-engage with STL’s history.

I also took my Lewis & Clark trail hike on Thanksgiving morning, which is now a requirement any time I travel back to the Show Me state.

FRD Live 2025

My final trip and commitment of the year would be FRD Live 2025 – our year end event in Austin with 150+ fathers. This is the big one. The event that creates impact well beyond our community and brotherhood.

This year I played a big role in the design and co-facilitation with Jon, which was fun and challenging. I’m not a “big event” kinda guy… I prefer the smaller retreats and adventures. Yet this experience ended up being unforgettable.

• We beat drums together like a tribe that’s willing to go to war for themselves, their families and their brothers.
• We practiced sacred embodiment that sparked new growth, tested their edges and deepened their masculine presence.
• We went all out in games and contests that let their inner child get lost in real play.
• We learned with other amazing leaders that came to offer their unique gifts and powerful perspectives.

I also had the privilege of sharing some of my “Archetypes” work with the men, which was a session on choosing the conscious kings, lovers, warriors and explorers we have capacity to embody.  I believe we’re at an important inflection point in human history where it’s more critical than ever to consciously choose how we show up.

I don’t typically prefer to speak in the spotlight, it’s just not who I am.  However, speaking at FRD Live is always a gift because the guys are so welcoming and curious.  I enjoyed sharing some of my stories and learnings with them.

I left FRD Live beautifully exhausted. This event took it all out of me in all the ways – emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually. The culmination of work, energy and service from the entire year reached it’s completion. It was like climbing a mountain and then walking back down with nothing left to do but rest.

I had nothing left… which was exactly where I needed to be to end the year.

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Summary

To summarize 2025 could take a lot of words! Or… it could take less. Here’s what feels most important.

Commitment

In 2025 I made a deeper commitment to the things I love. I showed up for them, served them, and received so much in return.

• Commitment to my family, friends and Front Row Dads.
• Commitment to adventures and more time in nature.
• Commitment to a deeper sense of curiosity, courage and knowing.

I’m grateful for all the people who helped co-create the experiences and moments that made it a powerful year. It was a year that tested my commitment in new ways, and I feel more alive and expressed as a result. I believe 2025 was pivotal in my growth as a creator, explorer and leader.

Nature

I continue to see nature as my greatest mentor. It offers us so much to appreciate, understand and learn from. My wellbeing and spiritual practice continue to deep as I live in more alignment with nature. Below are some of the beautiful places I wandered into last year.

This planet is so amazing.

Finally… I will leave you with some thoughts on my word from 2025 –

Clarity

Clarity can be fickle.

• Some moments we have it, and then other moments it quickly evades us.
• Sometimes we’re so clear on the path ahead, and other times we get lost in the fog and confusion of life.
• Some days we know exactly why, what, when, where and how. Then there are days when everything is questionable.

Here’s what I learned about clarity in 2025:

Clarity requires courage and curiosity.
Clarity is more powerful as a feeling, not a thought.
Clarity is usually realized through connection with something outside of yourself.
And most importantly, clarity comes and goes.

Life is too dynamic and unpredictable for clarity to be persistent. The human experience requires not knowing at times. Our greatest being and capacity often lives on the other side of uncertainty.

I’m grateful for 2025. I’m clear that it was a year of incredible experiences.

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