Backroads

When I was younger, success looked simple. It was about winning the game, making the grade, or getting the recognition. Later, it was...

No one likes to fail. It stings, it bruises the ego, and it makes you question whether you’re on the right path at all. But over time,...

Most people prefer the well-worn trail. It feels safer, predictable, and lined with markers of what others call “success.” But I’ve...

Servant leadership taught me to put others first. Compassion taught me how to see them. In both the Army and civilian life, you quickly...

Integrity builds trust. Servant leadership honors it. In the Army, leadership wasn’t just about rank on your chest — it was about how you...

Work ethic will get you noticed. Integrity will keep you trusted. The Army made this clear from day one. There were endless ways to cut...

Lives Depend Upon It Gratitude made me realize how much had been invested in me by others. Work ethic is how I honor that investment. One...

Humility taught me to look for lessons in the people around me. Gratitude taught me to never forget where those lessons came from. In the...

I was 19, fresh out of a small Florida town and into the Army, carrying the mindset that if I showed up ready to give my best every day,...

Iris Falls I’m back. Back from the Bechler River. Back from days of deep wilderness, long miles, cold water crossings, and shared...

Some friendships and mentors walk with us for only part of the trail. Then, somewhere along the way, they step off, and we’re left to...

Most people learn problem-solving from textbooks. I learned it by fixing a cracked radiator hose with duct tape, 20 miles from the...

MH-47 The roar of the crowd was a distant hum, a muffled echo against the sharp, searing pain in my side. I lay on the damp grass, the...

I was six the first time my father handed me a .22 rifle. It wasn’t some grand rite of passage. No ceremony. Just a foggy December...

Feeling a little nostalgic tonight thinking about my military experiences and want to share. I hope you enjoy, reflect and celebrate...

Some voices never leave you. They echo in your head when you’re standing at a crossroads. They whisper in the quiet moments, show up in...

There’s something sacred about early mornings in the backcountry—mist rising off a river, the steady hum of a Coleman stove, the soft...

My Walden We all have moments where the noise of the world threatens to drown out our inner voice. The demands of work, family, and the...

At first glance, Henry David Thoreau and Theodore Roosevelt seem like polar opposites. Thoreau, the introspective naturalist, seeking...

GREY BULL In the space where shadows fall,   Where echoes cry and lost ones call,   Between the lines, unseen, unheard,   We move with...