Jason Merryman whom I know from back home – although he went to a neighboring (and rival) high school – is serving in Iraq with the United States Air Force.
Another high school classmate of mine, Alex Engle flew in the bombing campaign as a member of the Air Force’s 363rd Air Expeditionary Squadrom.
I do think of both of them from time to time – along with the others serving in the Middle East – and hope that they are well and safe.
Ramsey Clark, former Attorney General for Lyndon Johnson, has long been an opponent to any action against Iraq, dating back to the early 1990’s. In fact, if you read his material, you’d think that he was a supporter of Saddam Hussein.
His latest blathering to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan is just about Bush’s State of the Union speech.
Reading through his archives, it appears that Clark has written more than twenty letters to Annan over the last few years, complaining about nearly every aspects of US Policy in the Middle East. He’s even written letters to free Mumia.
I think he’s lost his marbles.
It is fitting we are gathered here on the shuttle runway for this event. It was here last Saturday that family and friends waited anxiously to celebrate with the crew their successful mission and safe return to earth.
It never happened.
I’m sure that Columbia, which had traveled millions of miles and made that fiery re-entry 27 times before, struggled mightily in those last moments to bring her crew home safely once again. She wasn’t successful.
Columbia was a fine ship. She was named after Robert Gray’s exploration ship, which sailed out of Boston Harbor in the 18th centry. Columbia and the other orbiters were all named after great explorer ships, because that is their mission, to explore the unknown.
Columbia was hardly a thing of beauty, except to those of us who loved and cared for her. She was often bad-mouthed for being a little heavy in the rear end. But many of us can relate to that. Many said she was old and past her prime.
Still, she had lived barely a quarter of her design life; in years, she was only twenty-two. Columbia had a great many missions ahead of her. She along with the crew had her life snuffed our in her prime…
There’s heavy grief in our hearts, which will diminish in time, but it will never go away, and we will never forget.
Hail Rick, Willie, KC, Mike, Laurel, Dave, and Ilan. Hail Columbia.
– Astronaut Robert Crippen’s Eulogy for the Shuttle Columbia Astronauts
Crippen served as the first pilot of Columbia on her maiden voyage in April 1981
Dear Jessie:
As the moon lingers a moment over the bitterroots before its descent
into the invisible, my mind is filled with song. I find I am humming,
softly, not to the music, but to somethign else. Someplace else. A
place remembered.
A field of grass where no one seemed to have been, except for the deer.
And the memory is strengthed by the memory of you – dancing in my awkward
arms.
Norman
In my early days on the internet, back at The Indiana Academy and at Indiana University, I used to write.
I mean, really write. Not the sort of posting that I do on my weblog here, I mean deep meaningful writings about things that were happening in my life. Some were outrageous, some were self-righteous, some were deep, others just whimsical.
I remember writing when I was in the deep throes of major depression during my last semester at the Academy I remember writing sitting at a New Years Party in 1995 in Bloomington, Indiana watching my world change yet again during my lifetime. I remember writing about the tough times you find as a teenager when youre moving from being a child towards becoming an adult.
I remember reflecting on the death of my grandmother, on the Oklahoma City Bombing, on the first gulf war, on abortion, on civil rights, on the early mission of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, on pondering what to do with life.
Im not sure why I dont write like that anymore… Or why I havent taken the time to write on my blog the way that I used to write in those old clunky .plan files that were around with tools like finger that no one uses anymore.
Here, let me finger you 😉
Sometimes when I think about it, I can come up with reasons why I dont write like I used to.. Some is just time related.. I have a very time consuming job with a long commute (I chose it, not them), so often when I get home, I just want to vegetate and do things at home.. Its also knowing that many people from my employer read this weblog, and perhaps it would be better not to write the way that I used to write.
Then I ponder the simple fact that I am who I am writing is a reflection of that how I lead and my thoughts about leadership often spring from simple thoughts and self-reflections.. And in that vein I should write about what I choose and not feel fear or apprehension about doing so…
I guess Im torn on this…
I could have started my weblog anonymously as one of my friends does she writes on a domain thats registered in my name and nothing on her weblog identifies her as who she is.. And she writes some of the most heartfelt authentic things Ive ever seen on a weblog… But like Emile Zola said a long time ago, I am here to live my life out loud, and I refuse to do this… I am going to be who I am… Hiding isnt my strong suit…
Many of my writings from Indiana University are sitting on one of my machines here, I am going to dig them out and repost them.. Because I should.. And because they reflect truly who I am.. Or who I was.. I know Ive grown since then, but sometimes its hard to tell.
My writings from the academy are mostly lost to me.. I had a tape backup on one of those old reel to reel tape machines that VAX/VMS machines used.. And I left it at BSU when I left.. And that was more than twelve years ago now.. So its not coming back to me.. But I do remember some of what I wrote….
The Story of Nemen Wulawachtopin
A different WWW
Ponderings about Richard Bach
I died to become the person that I am today, was it worth it?
Arguments about academic and electronic freedom
For some of these, I remember what I wrote.. For others, I do not.. And those are lost forever, and for that Im eternally sad. It would be a treat to read the things I wrote thirteen years ago as a wide eyed sixteen year old living on the campus of Ball State University and remember those experiences.. But its not to be..
Im resolved to do a better job of taking the time to write meaningfully.. Kerris encouraged me to debate and argue more.. And I can certainly do that through my writings.. But often I just want to share, even if I tend to do it cryptically sometimes, the thoughts that are running through my head.. Or the things that I see and feel in my heart…
But more importantly, writing about the things I see, feel, experience, and think provides an outlet for me to connect with myself.. Its a chance to reflect on how Ive chosen to live my life, a chance to express the perceptions of events and people that I see..
I choose to write again. I hope you will help me hold myself to this.
An officer in the US Naval reserve was attending a conference that included admirals from both the US Navy and the French Navy. At a cocktail reception, he found himself in a small group that included personnel from both navies. The French admiral started complaining that whereas Europeans learned many languages, Americans learned only English. He then asked: “Why is it that we have to speak English in these conferences rather than you speak French?”
Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied: “Maybe it’s because the British, Canadians, Australians and Americans arranged it so you would not have to speak German.” [Sgt Hook]