A new blog feature!

When I was a freshman at Lawrenceville, sitting in those comfortable red chairs, nervous about being a new II form student, a professor I had never seen before stood up on stage to talk to us.  I'm sure it was a welcome to our new home, but most vividly I remember sitting there as he quoted John F. Kennedy saying, "To those whom much is given, much is expected."  I can remember the feeling I had at that age, and getting the chills as a nervous energy ran through me.  I thought who am I to be sitting here with this incredible opportunity in front of me?  Who am I to be so lucky?  At that time I had barely seen the world, hadn't yet spent any time volunteering, and had dedicated myself wholeheartedly to my soccer and riding careers.  Later though, looking back, I can see that moment as a turning point, both because the Lawrenceville lifestyle required us to live those values, but because I always found myself wanting more.  More for myself and more for others.  And I know I'm not the only one out there who gets that feeling.

There are a lot people in my life that I'm proud to know.  I talk about some of those people very often, as they have had an important impact on my life.  Over the years I have met some incredible people through school, service and riding horses.  Somehow the people I continue to keep around me are some of the most driven and motivated people I know.  As a tribute to them from now on, once a week, I'm going to share their stories, as told by them.  There is no formula for what you may hear because I haven't asked them to share anything specific, I simply ask them to share who they are, and what makes them so special. Some may write with pen names, while some may share photographs of themselves and photos that they have taken.  The important thing isn't knowing their name, but rather who they are at their very core.  I want to share what makes them so special, and from their own perspective, why they do the incredible things they do.  

Each week I will continue to write as usual, but on each Thursday or Friday I will share a story.  For this new column/project, I will also share stories from around the world, and as I head out on adventures, more people will come into my life in this new blog feature, "Facing a brave new world".

"And that," put the Director senteniously, "that is the secret of happiness and virtue - liking what you've got to do.  All conditioning aims at that: making people like their inescapable social destiny" - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World