The Stick

Sign in Subscribe

A water drop causing ripples on the surface.

Spiritual Practice

Pain, Suffering, Refuge: Part 2

A story of cause and effect, by Jude. Continued from Pain, Suffering, Refuge: Intermission. The country club seemed empty for a Friday night. Even so, I hustled to and from the kitchen clearing and setting tables, wondering where the other busboy had gone. I pushed open the kitchen’s swinging

Armored knights engaged in combat.

Tonic Masculinity

Honor Code

A story of retribution, by Stuart. My school always sponsored a hayride in early October, and most everybody took the opportunity to ride an open cart in the chilly Autumn evening with a delicious cup of hot apple cider waiting for them at the end. But there were risks. School-sponsored

A football on a field

Tonic Masculinity

Fighting Words

A story of pushing back, by Felix. I grew up in a bar. My mom worked at Sonny’s, the neighborhood dive, a fine place to drink cheap beer and listen to a juke box as vintage as the clientele. After school I’d sit there waiting until the end

Two birds close together in a tree

Pain, Suffering, Refuge: Intermission

A side conversation, with Tristan and Jude. Continued from Pain, Suffering, Refuge: Part 1. Jude stood at the garden bed, tending peppers in the afternoon’s golden hours. By then the shadows stretched over him and the rest of the farm, a contrast to the stunning amber glow of twilight

Depressed man standing alone

Spiritual Practice

Pain, Suffering, Refuge: Part 1

Thoughts about the hard times, by Jude. My family didn’t have a whole lot of money growing up. Though we never wanted for any necessities – we always had food, clothing, shelter, and presents under the Christmas tree – I did sometimes long for things we didn’t have. I remember

Silent Dignity is Cool

Silent Dignity is Cool

A story of unintended second chances, by Stuart. Everyone needs a fresh start after middle school. I needed one bad. I arrived in sixth grade with my giant plastic glasses, small body in hand-me-down clothes, and complete inability to control my limbs during any sort of athletic activity like throwing

Lieutenant Cain

Lieutenant Cain

A story of getting out by going through, by Ian. They say Navy Surface Warfare Officers eat their young. I can attest this is not true, but it happens often enough that it feels true. As a young, lost junior officer on his first ship, I longed for good examples

Yardstick: Summer 2025

Yardstick: Summer 2025

A seasonal update. Thank you. I mean it. For a long time I played with the idea of sharing my words outside of my own notebooks, but it’s scary. It’s one thing to send them out into the world and completely another to send them out into the

Faking It, Part 3

Faking It, Part 3

A story of failure, by Ian, continued from Faking It, Part 2. This story was originally published on June 28, 2025. OPS caught me right after breakfast on Friday morning. “Well, sir, last night we were able to complete the flight deck events that we had planned for this morning,

A ship on the horizon steaming toward the sunset.

Faking It, Part 2

A story of our own expectations, by Ian, continued from Faking It, Part I. This story was originally published on June 22, 2025. That night a piercing ring shocked me from the depths of sleep. I slap grabbed the phone and managed, “…Captain….” “Sir, this is the Officer of the

Daddy Magic

Thoughts on Father’s Day. This post was originally published on Father's Day, June 15, 2025. Many years ago, when my kids were young, I told them I had Daddy Magic. Whenever Lilly or Indy got bumps, scrapes, or bruises, I would rub my hands together, blow into

Ships moored in San Diego at sunrise.

Faking It, Part 1

A story of others’ expectations, by Ian. This story was originally published on June 8, 2025. I closed my eyes and drew in that cool, dry morning air from the bridge wing, high above the pier. Sunlight stretched up from behind the eastern mountains into an open sky, now glowing

A dog looking at you over the rim of her sunglasses.

Be a Bad Dog

Productivity advice, by Felix. This post was originally published on June 1, 2025. You want to be productive? Stop reading productivity advice. I used to devour this stuff. Any article I saw that remotely fit into the kind of work I did, any content that promised to offer some slight

A Moment to Pause, A Call to Act

Thoughts on Memorial Day, by Stuart. This post was originally published on Memorial Day, May 26, 2025. You might see reminders today to pause, if only for a moment, to honor our service members who sacrificed their lives in defense of our nation. Certainly, we should do that. But on

Spiritual Practice

Small Steps

Thoughts on the long road to goodness, by Jude. This post was originally published on May 18, 2025. Strive first to be good, then to do good. “Doing good” without being good causes more harm than good. A little phrase like this might play well on your social media feed

An old Navy uniform hanging in the closet.

Sailor for Life

A story of stubborn refusal by Ian. This story was originally published on May 11, 2025. My God - to be on the bridge of a ship at sunset with a warm jacket and a fresh cup of coffee. I would not soil it with cream and sugar because swallowing

Principles and the Power of "No"

This post was originally published on May 4, 2025. For most of our marriage, Penelope read about the latest world events and, during our nightly conversations, did her best to keep me up to date. I never paid much attention to the news. That is, until January 6, 2021. That

A figure holding a lantern staff.

Welcome to The Stick

This post was originally published on April 24, 2025. The black hole news draws me deep into my lizard brain, unable to feel anything other than helpless, hopeless anger. This is not terribly constructive. I once held delusions of being the lone voice on the windy corner, standing my ground