A year ago, I found myself facing one of the great realities of my age. At some point, your Amazon purchase history quietly shifts from gadgets and books to orthopedic inserts, fiber supplements, and the occasional emergency tube of hemorrhoid cream. Pride falls quickly when your internal plumbing declares mutiny. Naturally, I wanted to handle
Preparation H and the Mystery of the Playing Cards Read More »
Dawn and I have recently been falling asleep at night reviewing old episodes of Star Trek on Pluto TV. I love the nostalgia from those old shows I grew up with. I love the music, the corny costumes, the dramatic stories, and the impossible situations that somehow always seemed to land on Captain Kirk’s desk.
Captain Kirk and Impossible Scenarios Read More »
There is an old irony buried inside The Ransom of Red Chief that feels strangely modern right now. I found myself thinking about it recently while listening to the news and watching commentators talk about escalation with Iran, retaliation, deterrence, and the language nations always seem to use before they become trapped in something larger
Iran, The Ransom of Red Chief, and the Psychology of Escalation Read More »
Eighteen years ago today, you were born. It feels impossible to even write that sentence. In my mind, I can still see you as that little boy running through the house, laughing at things only kids find funny, carrying toys in your hands, and excitement in your eyes. Yet here you are, eighteen years old,
A Letter to Landon, on his birthday Read More »
The rain started sometime after midnight. Not the violent kind of storm that rattles windows or sends people scrambling for weather alerts, just a steady Appalachian rain falling softly through the darkness. Before going to bed, I had accidentally left the door cracked open, and during the night the opening widened and the house slowly
Open Windows, Rainstorms, and Resilience Read More »
Our relationship with our parents doesn’t end when we become adults. It just changes form. And when that relationship is strained, it doesn’t stay contained in the past. It seeps into identity, into marriage, into how we see ourselves in the mirror. For better or worse, our parents are our first reference point for what
The Long Shadow of Our Parents Read More »
I was a teenager when I first learned the world might not last long enough for me to grow up. It didn’t come from a fringe voice or some distant preacher on television. It came from people I trusted. My dad had been reading The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey, and like a
When the End Was Supposed to Come Read More »
It came to me somewhere between waking and sleep. Not the kind of dream that feels strange or distant, but one of those that feels almost remembered, like it had already happened and I had just forgotten it for a while. I was lying there, not quite asleep, not fully awake, and the images started
The Revival in my Dreams Read More »
The Supreme Court handed down a decision today striking down Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors. The ruling, decided 8–1, surprised many. It will likely reshape how states regulate therapy, speech, and professional boundaries moving forward. For many of my colleagues in counseling and mental health, this decision feels like a step backward. For
I confess. I did it. Before you judge me too harshly, you need to understand something about me. I need my sleep. I’ve always had a strange relationship with sleep. On one hand, I appreciate it. On the other, I resent it a little. I’ve often done the math: if I live to be 90
Confession of a Sleep-Deprived Man Read More »