Did you hear about the time…? Did I ever tell you about…? Do you remember…? Were you there when…? For more than thirty-five years at Union University, conversations often began with some version of these phrases. From August 1989—when I arrived as a scared little freshman—until my job ended in 2024, I was frequently regaled …
Category: Relational Equity
Transplanted
One of the charming aspects of being an academic is that you are often surrounded by experts in a variety of fields and disciplines from healthcare to soil science! Like others on campus, I can be guilty of gushing about subjects I find intriguing, whether that involves the dimensions of wellness, Unreasonable Hospitality, or Appreciative …
Emerging Elderhood
How are we modeling for young people how to grow old? Most of my days are spent with Emerging Adults, who are in a Season of Life that doesn’t typically lend itself to taking a long view of their existence. However, within the discipline of human performance, where topics include nutrition, the dimensions of wellness, …
16th Second
After 30 years in education, I would admit that I’ve heard my fair share of commencement speeches—some memorable, others not. There is often an underlying theme of something along the lines of “go out and conquer the world.” I even ask, that during a life calling assignment, my students listen to an excerpt from a …
Contented Souls
Are you ever saddened by an occurrence that really has little or nothing to do with your life personally, but for whatever reason, stirs emotion inside of you? If you answer in the affirmative, I’d be curious for you to share your story with me sometime. Being fairly certain that your story will differ greatly …
Understanding Helps
“Even when there is nothing anyone can do, Understanding Helps.” Perhaps referencing a quote from a fiction book where the plot description is: “An FBI hostage negotiator confronts a commercial pilot who has hijacked his own plane in this spellbinding thriller…” is not a proper place to hear the Quiet Whispers of God; however, as …
Wrestling Coach
Academic people intimidate me. Yes, I comprehend the irony of that statement but it’s also accurate. To prove this statement even further, I will confess a true event: I once returned the book provided for a faculty dialogue group because I didn’t understand it! Fortunately, this has only happened once and the opportunity to converse …
Up For Grabs
Transhumanism, expressive individualism—anything ending in an “ism” is likely more of a deterrent for me than an invitation to dig in. Perhaps I’m intimidated by the fact that the concepts will be too philosophical for my practical mind to grasp; nevertheless, the topic of the best place to anchor our identity grabs my interest, even …
Vanishing Virtues
Since beginning this research into what it means to Flourish at Life, I admit to being rather hesitant in any of my writings to use the word virtue. In today’s culture, you don’t hear the word spoken much. In fact, outside of a discussion related to a passage from Proverbs 31 in faith circles, it’s …
Past Perfection
Studying history is unlikely to appear as a priority on any of my to-do lists; however, as my age continues to increase, I seem to notice a growing fascination, or at least a budding appreciation, for events of the past. Perhaps some of this interest stems from a captivation with generational theory in an attempt …
Flourishing @ Life 