Veterans have historically been disappointed with the medical services administered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the common assumption is that the services are slow and behind current best medical practices, I have heard veterans complain about many of these issues, but I had failed to consider an additional factor underlying the frustration veterans experience searching for services. During an interview with a veteran, something the veteran said prod

Is the self really a matter of perspective? I was listening to a motivational speaker make an analogy of the glass with water. When the question of whether the glass is half empty or half full, the answer he came up with was "how do I fill the remaining part of the glass?" This is an example of redefining the problem. It is not a matter of whether the situation is good or bad, but what you will make of the situation as it stands. How do I fill the glass? It is easy to con

On my typical walk this early morning, in the dim light of a rising sun, a police officer drove up to me. I wasn't concerned because this is my community, and less when the police officer was an old friend who serves on my city's police force. Discussed my dog, who had run away and suspected to have been taken, and a couple of other n on-crime related topics. We spoke briefly on a fairly well traveled road, especially in the morning when children are being left off at scho

My recent birthday brought back to mind a few personal considerations. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame and at the age of twenty-two, I wrote down fifty goals I planned to achieve by my 50th birthday. I was without work during the summer of 1991, having failed to secure a position with Teach for America after making the final cut and now, after graduation, back living with my mother. I returned to live with my mother with the intention of becoming self-su