War was my lover, once. She allured me, slowly and cunningly Whispers of foreign lands, dreams of glory, brotherhood, and valor I had a lover Continue Reading
Philosophy & Poetry
When Grief Knocks and God Answers
So exhausted, so brokenRivers of tearsToo much loss for me to bearGriefYou may not camp here, but you must visit, reason, and decide how and why you Continue Reading
Built To Last
Punch. Punch. Thwack. Punch.Ten hours straight, 30 minute lunch.Bucking rivets into turbine shrouds,"Pratt Built Is Best Built,"says the Continue Reading
Burgers on the Grill
It was a burgers on the grill holiday.Warm weather means mellow charcoaland ice cold beers in the late Spring.The sun shone down brightlyand NASCAR Continue Reading
Why Hard Work Still Wins in a World That Feels Like It’s Falling Apart
When I bought my first car, gas cost right around one dollar a gallon. What a time to be alive. Of course, I only made around $5.50 an hour at my pet Continue Reading
Retrogression
Its generic blue tint looks like a night’s rest that for the last few weeks has escaped. Never did I think that one day it would turn into the Continue Reading
Wisdom Lies in Silence, and Happiness Lies in Sleep
There are some truths so simple, so unadorned, that they feel eternal. One of them comes from Socrates—perhaps the most misunderstood philosopher in Continue Reading
The Dreamer
I’ve been called a dreamer for most of my life. The people closest to me have seen me cast wide nets with often ambitious goals, only to watch me—in Continue Reading
The Strength in Owning Our Imperfections
The world is filled with clips and quips of falsehoods. It is neither perfect nor fair. We are flawed humans stumbling through life, trying to do our Continue Reading
Not “If,” but “When”— Rethinking Kipling (For Our Daughters)
My wife and I have two daughters, one away at college (Emily) and one still in high school (Shannon). Both of them are contemplating carrying on the Continue Reading
“WHOLE”
The bed draws in, the vortex hums,A coffin’s whisper in a temporary tomb.He slides inside the MRI,A long, low moan like men who dieWith open eyes and Continue Reading
What Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War Can Teach Us About the Future of Military Conflict
Over 2,400 years ago, an Athenian general and historian named Thucydides chronicled a brutal, generation-defining conflict between Athens and Sparta. Continue Reading