I have always been fascinated by Kintsugi, the traditional Japanese art of mending broken pieces of pottery with liquid gold, silver, or lacquer — thus highlighting and enhancing the breaks and...

One day in school, I saw classmates bullying a girl in my class. They ganged up on her, saying really mean things to her. She seemed on the verge of tears....

I grew up braving bees, skunks, and thorns to pick wild blackberries for the promise of winter pies. Recently, I picked alone, leaning into the thorny vines as always. I knew...

Psychologist Jean Piaget carried out psychological experiments in which he observed that very young babies (under six months old) would be clearly interested in a toy placed a few yards in...

Each Friday, people flock to a farmers market near my home to buy meats, cheeses, produce, and other items. Shoppers look for different things — according to their needs. That’s just...

As a young Annapolis plebe disembarking from the USS Newport News to tour the old brick streets of Lisbon, Portugal, I saw an old man in dirty clothing begging on the...

Working in the unforgiving heat of the day during our environmental cleanup campaign, approximately 70 people showed up to clean a very contaminated mangrove swamp. When we took a short break,...

Not long after I turned 40, my health started going downhill. I experienced loss of appetite, sleeplessness, weight loss, and irrational thinking. My marriage was in trouble, and our oldest child...

I experience a special joy any time I pull an envelope out of my mailbox and see the handwriting of a dear friend or family member. I don’t need to look...

I had been driving to a town almost 200 miles away for an annual professional conference. I had set out expecting the drive to be a fun adventure, but then my...