🌸 The Flower and Flame of Memorial Day
Honoring sacrifice with service, one wilting flower, one spreading flame at a time.
Topic
veterans
A collection of 11 issues
🤞 A Skeptic's Hope
It's Fourth of July in the year 2025, and I'm conflicted.
On Skepticism
I am, by nature, a skeptic. At times, I've leaned too deeply into that skepticism, allowing it to poison the possibilities of better outcomes. In other cases, it has served me
🔋 Priority Pivots
You've seen Friends, right?
Somehow I hadn't, at least not in full, until a couple years ago (good lookin' out, Em). Watching it rounded out some iconic memes and scenes I knew from the cultural zeitgeist but could never really explain.
Including:
It turns out
☄️ Unto the Senseless Breach
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
King Henry V unleashes these words from a commanding position above battle-worn troops, clad in a mix of modified urban camouflage. Rolling fog creates palpable unease and tension.
The King offers up the alternative:
Or close the wall up with our
Procrastination in a Bunker
On deployment, I wrote a newsletter. I was 21, sending reflections from a foreign land with tight restrictions on what I could and could not do and say. I knew how to string sentences together, but I hadn't read or written enough to move beyond adolescent syntax and
Serve
When I was seventeen, I raised my right and took an oath:
I, Ryan Andrew Pavel, do solemnly swear that I will uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, and that
If My Kids Ask About Joining the Military
It’s the day after July 4th (aka July 5th). Amidst yesterday’s fireworks and cookout, I found myself pondering: how would I feel if my kids consider joining the military?
I have a few days off work, allowing me precious time with family and a chance to do things
Think.
Think. This is what my father taught me. When I faced a challenge, made a poor decision, or tried to figure out what to do with my life, he would give this simple yet profound advice: think.
In Our Declaration, political philosopher Danielle Allen titles her second chapter “Patrimony,” which
Go With the (Lazy) Flow
Culture is a strange thing. Leaders can and should be intentional about how they build and reinforce it, but sometimes it develops or regresses for completely unforeseen reasons.
Enter, for example, the lazy river.
Last week, we brought together our 32 alumni fellows and a dozen central team members to
Saying Yes
The other day, I walked past Revival Food Hall in Chicago. I stopped in to snap this picture and take a few minutes to reflect on the significance of this spot.
Nearly five years ago, this is where I said "yes" to Warrior-Scholar Project co-founder Jesse Reising about