Commencement Part II

In a recent Wall Street Journal article, economist Charles Wheelan wrote about the things that he wished his commencement speaker had told him. Number 7 on the list of 10: “Your parents don’t want what is best for you.” Huh? You mean that after doing my best to...

Be Prepared

Scouts’ motto: Be Prepared. This weekend, snow crept slowly over the mountain ridges filling the valley below, cocooning us in a soft, white lullaby. At risk of being lulled by nature’s beauty, I thought about Lady Wisdom and asked myself, “Am I prepared?” Yes, surely...

Principles and Procedures

In a recent issue of The New Yorker, Adam Gopnik published an article about the large prison population in the United States as evidence of the American justice system’s failure. “How did we get here?” Gopnik asked. Referring to The Collapse of American Criminal...

New Year’s Resolutions

Last week, I wrote about my son at age 10, the beginning of the double digits. This week, I begin the New Year with a story about my daughter when she was 10 years old. As recorded in a letter to my parents, here is what she wrote on her marker board on January 2,...

Thanksgiving and Humility

Thanksgiving celebrates harvest time during the fall in nature’s calendar, but for me the holiday changed according to the seasons of life. In the “springtime” of youth, I set the table, helped in the kitchen and babysat younger cousins during dinner. When the...