Image of “Where the Wild Things Are” (by Maurice Sendak) courtesy of Muddying The Waters. For some, this title might seem a bit strange – what could anyone learn about war from a three year old? I’d categorize those people as “non-parents.” Anyone who has regularly faced a small child knows that there are…
[Note: see video here.] Bill Gates: It’s an inspiration that one person [Leonardo da Vinci] off on their own, with no positive feedback, nobody ever told him, you know, it was right or wrong. That he kept pushing himself. You know, found knowledge in itself to be a beautiful thing. Gates scoffs at any comparison…
Sir Ken Robinson on education… There are three principles on which human life flourishes, and they are contradicted by the culture of education under which most teachers have to labor and most students have to endure. The first is this, that human beings are naturally different and diverse…
This past September, my younger brother Kevin gave a modified, generic greeting card to my wife Rachel and I, that, in conclusion, read: “you saved my life.” I hugged him and reminded him of how far he had come through his hard work. Then, when Rachel and I went up to bed, in the quiet…
Because the Pritzker Military Library has blessed me with so much content recently, I feel compelled to comment on some of it while it is still on my mind. On November 12, 2005, Doris Kearns Goodwin spoke to the Library about Abraham Lincoln and her hugely successful book, Team of Rivals. She commented on what…
I was still at senior at West Point, roughly 50 miles north of New York City on the Hudson River, on September 11th, 2001. I was in a course on Chinese politics, about to listen to a lecture from U.S. Defense Attaché to China, when my professor turned on the television in time to watch…
I went for a run on Oriental Bay a few weeks ago, and as I turned left I nearly bowled over All Blacks Head Coach Graham Henry on the day of the Tri Nations match in Wellington. Although excited and somewhat mortified, I wanted to turn back and talk to him about an outsider’s view…
Tomorrow morning, I’ll be standing at or near the start line of my first real race since…last September 18th, I think. Nine months. That’s an eternity to a runner that’s accustomed to racing 8-10 times per year for the past 5 years. Of course, this is a race that I won’t completely burn out for.…
My wife Rachel and I became parents a few days ago (although, one could argue that happened roughly 9 months ago, but it became much more real this past weekend). At left is a picture of our newborn daughter, Grace Victoria Cavanaugh. She was born at 1:36am on Sunday, June 5th in Wellington, New Zealand.…
This is a unique entry, one that I’m going to keep short, but for good reason. At left is a picture of my newborn daughter, Grace Victoria Cavanaugh. She was born at 1:36am on Sunday, June 5th in Wellington, New Zealand. She was 7 pounds, 2.5 ounces at birth, and you can see she had…