“Oh, God, bring him back.  I shall keep asking you.” John Irving, A Prayer for Owen Meany In my 30-year career, I have attended a number of conferences for aquatic professionals.  We often gather to share our expertise about operations, programs, training, budgets, and more.  We learn from each other, and pat ourselves on the backs for jobs well [...]

I am reminded of the old adage, “No matter how bad you think things are, someone else always has it worse.”  This past weekend, my family members gathered, as they always do, at the Jersey shore to celebrate the Fourth of July.  I wasn’t there.  I was the only one missing.  Homesick doesn’t even begin [...]

I ran into a woman and her son at a dessert place near my home.  I remember the boy and his brother from swim lessons, and have had several nice conversations with their father.  I feel I know the whole family, but I admit I don’t know the mother particularly well.  She is now on [...]