Bird Droppings June 12, 2025What is this desire for freedom? “Brute force, no matter how strongly applied, can never subdue the basic human desire for freedom and dignity. It is not enough, as communist systems have assumed, merely to provide people with food, shelter, and clothing. Human nature needs to breathe the precious air of…

Bird Droppings June , 2025Teaching can be successful. When I am home, I try to walk out to a quiet corner of my backyard; a couple of weeks ago, I walked two miles on the beach at Pawleys Island. Even at the beach, strands of spider webbing are still hanging, connecting everything. The scientist, part…

Bird droppings June 3, 2025Translating and communicating “Scientific management is always on guard against people who don’t fit securely into boxes, whether because of too much competency, too much creativity, too much popularity, or what have you. Although often hired, it is with the understanding they must be kept on a short leash and regarded…

Bird Droppings June 2, 2025In a world of data, can we still use intuition? Two years ago, I spent the better part of the week either sitting on or walking on the beach at Pawleys Island, South Carolina. Whenever my wife and I go, we ensure we see the sunrise every morning. It was supposed…

Bird Droppings May 29, 2025Keeping the stories going, remembering a dear friend For years, I would visit, take photos, and offer my two cents at the Foxfire Approach to Teaching Course, hosted by Piedmont College for graduate students and teachers already in Mountain City, Georgia, classroom. This course was an elective graduate class in Piedmont…

Bird Droppings May 28, 2025Why should we do more? “Choices are sacred to life’s journey. They lie along the path that all of us must follow for ourselves. An important Cherokee lesson is that if you involve yourself in any decision, you also experience the consequences of that decision.” Dr. J.T. Garrett, Meditations with the…

Bird Droppings May 18, 2015Filling cracks in leaky pots is not always the solution Many thousands of years ago Buddha compared people to four kinds of clay vessels. Borrowing these words today as I am thinking to several days lost traveling to see a new grand baby, from my normal routine of writing and doing…

Bird Droppings May 12, 2025 Teaching can be successful, and it can happen at any time. When I am home, I try to search for a sunrise almost every morning. When we go to the beach at Pawleys Island, I am always on the beach for sunrises. Even at the beach, strands of spider webbing…