I found myself reflecting on the brave acts of the men and women who risked their lives, reputations and fortunes to establish a fragile democratic republic last evening, and it occurred to me that it must have been so difficult to keep the necessary revolt from devolving into mob rule. Nowadays, we face the emergence …
Tag: gregg hake
Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience
Everything is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, both literally and figuratively. My sons and I had the good fortune to wing our way down to the Keys for the weekend, and yesterday was a day of firsts. It occurred to me that these firsts - jet skiing, swimming with dolphins and eating curly fries - were not …
Truth and Virtue
If there is one thing we should impart in our schools, it is that few things in life are more gratifying than the pursuit of truth and the practice of virtue. Most people long to be right and do right, and given the right nourishment and encouragement, can accomplish both with ease and grace. The …
Thank you, Dad.
I’ve learned a great many valuable lessons from my father over the years, but the lesson which stands out most to me this evening is that to truly live you must care deeply about people. Unlike many people I’ve had the privilege of not only relating to my father as a child, but I’ve also …
The Magnificence of You
There is a point of centering from which the magnificence of you can be expressed. It is always at hand, no matter how much pressure you're under, how complicated the situation you're in might be or how powerless you feel. The key, of course, is to know how to find that place. I've found my …
Transforming the World
“Quand tu veux construire un bateau, ne commence pas par rassembler du bois, couper des planches et distribuer du travail, mais reveille au sein des hommes le desir de la mer grande et large. If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and …
One at a Time
A long voyage is a series of small jaunts in succession. A large project is a collection of tasks in sequence. A long word, like sesquipedalian, is composed of word parts strung together. Realizing this, you need not fear the Brobdingnagian events in your life...or the big words, for that matter! Take a step back, …
The Inextinguishable Flame
Anyone who has been the target of online bullying knows that in the new public forum created by the Internet knows the traditional social norms that typically govern in-person exchanges don't apply. Whereas in a face-to-face encounter most would act with a modicum of civility, the very same people might not hesitate to unleash a …
Great Challenges
One of the great challenges of living in the world is finding a way to get all of your beliefs in line. Most people live their lives as a "house divided" and the internal conflict of competing and conflicting beliefs spills over constantly in their expression and function. Consider this example: A common dissonance in …
Tilting at Windmills
While I'm on the topic of large organizations in need of rededication, I read yesterday that the United Nations accidentally started a cholera epidemic in Haiti a year-and-a-half ago that, so far, has claimed over 8,000 lives and infected some 647,000 others. The epidemic started when an inadequately screened group of soldiers were sent in …
Gregory Hake 