Trying to put one's career into perspective is like selecting those eight records for the Desert Island; what should one choose? My recollections are more of people than events. A few individuals have had a lasting influence on me, many more have enriched my life, only rarely have I met somebody I would not care to meet again. People of all types have always fascinated me, and this is perhaps why I have greatly enjoyed my time in psychiatry. My career lacked any master plan, things happened, opportunities arose but my path was determined as much by chance as anything else.