When I was twenty-one years old, I wrote my own will. Although I had no assets and nearly no earthly possessions, I still had to divvy up what little Continue Reading
death
The FNG
During Ranger School, a young Lieutenant who aspired to be a Green Beret asked Quint how someone short in stature like himself made it through SF Continue Reading
The lessons I learned in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery
(Where I met the ghosts of the living, but not of the dead) Arlington National Cemetery is a place that exists only in the imagination or deep Continue Reading
The Ramp
I was but maybe a month or two old, not truly but in war we are reborn. A newborn thrust into this world, cold and alone. I was riding that Continue Reading
In The Darkness We Can Still Find Hope
Last January I began working with a woman who struggled mightily throughout our sessions, but who nevertheless continued to meet with me. After she Continue Reading
Who Will Hold Me When I Die
Yesterday morning I dropped off my grandson, Asher, at the Waldorf school. It made no sense to drive all the way back home since I needed to pick him Continue Reading
Burdens and Blessings
I had a phone conversation with Matt recently. He was in my son’s squad in the Mountain Phase of Ranger school. He shared with me his story about that Continue Reading
My Funeral: Let Whatever Pain Caused By My Loss Not Whitewash My Life
By the time I was eight or nine, the vision was refined. While other children pondered their future success, I ponder my inevitable and desired Continue Reading
Why You Want a Physicist to Speak at Your Funeral
Author's Note: the following was written by Aaron Freeman (1956-), an American physicist, writer, broadcast journalist, and standup comedian, noted Continue Reading
Adding Up The Losses
Every drop of hot water was soothing as they rained down upon my body. I lay on the shower floor, staring as drop after drop slid down the side Continue Reading
I am Who I am Because of Those Lost
I live because they cannot. I strive to achieve because I must. I speak because their lessons deserve to live forever. I share because Continue Reading
What Will My Death Be?
I wonder if I will meet my death in old age, a small gathering of stalwarts at my funeral. Will it be a tragic accident along the way, leaving Continue Reading