Working on a seismic dynamite crew wasn’t your everyday job. It was two of us, out in the rugged terrain, setting off charges to help map the earth’s underground secrets. We’d drive from one drilled 75-foot hole to another. We carefully lowering 5-pound torpedo-shaped charges deep into the ground. Using long 10-foot sticks, we’d push

Back when I lived in Inglewood, many years ago, a friend gave me a little tree as a gift. It came in one of those plastic planting bags—just a few feet tall, barely more than a twig. She smiled and said, “Plant it in your backyard. One day, it might give you some shade.” So,

Every year, I’ve found myself taking on a new Halloween project to share with my colleagues. It started small—a simple carved pumpkin, lit with flickering LEDs I’d wired together myself. That first project brought a few smiles, and the spark of joy it created motivated me to try again the next year. Each Halloween, I

Many years ago, I replaced the old picket fence around my backyard with a solid six-foot panel fence, the kind with evenly spaced vertical slats. Over time, that fence began to show its age. One day, After noticing a few times that a slat had broken and needed replacing I finally tackled the task. It

We were four siblings, all born within five years, and when I was in elementary school, our mother got us a dog. She named her Missy Lum Lum. She had beagle-like ears, the long body of a dachshund, short, stubby legs, and stood about a foot high at the shoulder. She was small but full

This rap is born from a deeper journey I took after attending a seminar on mindfulness and the power of truly listening. It’s about stripping away the noise, the distractions, and the toxic narratives we inherit, while facing the mental battles of complaints, expectations, and past baggage. Through rhythm and rhyme, I’ve expressed what I’ve

Walter Cronkite was one of the most respected and influential journalists of the 20th century, known for his integrity and impartiality. Each night, he signed off with his famous line, “And that’s the way it is,” often followed by the day and date, offering reassurance to millions of people during some of the most turbulent

When I was a child, I lived in a rainy place, the kind of neighborhood where low-income families made do with what they had. The rain was always there, sometimes a drizzle, sometimes more, but it didn’t matter. It was the backdrop to our world. We lived in a row of two-story apartments, and our

In a seismic company, a Junior Observer (J.O.) is usually the less experienced member of the team, assisting with seismic data acquisition. I found myself in this role, working inside a truck with a small computer shack attached, known as the doghouse. With the senior observer called away, I was unexpectedly tasked with “shooting the

Have you ever done something despite being afraid of the potential consequences? I remember an experience from many years ago when I had to take the bus to work because my car was in for repairs. It was early in the morning, and after boarding, I walked to the back of the bus and sat

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed that change seems to impact people in different ways, especially as they age. There’s a certain comfort in the familiar—those routines we’ve spent years, even decades, developing. They become part of who we are, a testament to what works. Yet, there’s also a subtle risk: the risk of losing