Spirit

My brother is flying in tonight for a visit. It’s his way of reclaiming Nine-Eleven. He’s done it several times now.

Mark Twain gave a speech on July 4, 1907 in London on “The Day We Celebrate” where he connects five significant agreements in English and American history that advanced a working consensus on the meaning of freedom.

A power outage triggers some reflections on the value of redundancy and some kind words for those who make repairs on dark and rainy nights.

This Thanksgiving, I am reflecting on absent friends. I was able to say goodbye to some; in other cases neither of us realized we would soon be parted.

This blog is the seventeenth I have written about 9-11 14, starting with Lesser Sons of Greater Fathers in 2008. 9-11 at Twenty-Two notes how well we have moved on from the confusion and devastation of the attack on the Twin Towers.

“In Good Soil” is a well-written book on the founding of a new school and new monastery by a monk, Rev. Timothy Horner O.S.B., who was there from the beginning. It’s a story of a different kind of startup, full of insights and humorous observations.

Another “Spirit Sunday” post, this one based on a June 2023 tweet stream by Brent Beshore on aging gracefully and living for others.

Five insights on memory and mortality from two essays by Sven Birkerts about his parents’ last years: “The Ongoing Vigil” and “Remembrance.” This is one of my Sunday spirit posts, less concerned with entrepreneurship than what is means to be human.

Two speeches by Werner Heisenberg from the play Copenhagen by Michael Frayn. The first is a clever description of the uncertainty principle and the second explores the horrors of war.

Thoughts of gratitude on Thanksgiving 2021: the road goes on and we follow in the path of those who came before us, building on their accomplishments and insights.