Why subscribe?
The Marine Monk is an inquiry into what it means to live a life well-lived as a human in the 21st Century.
But let's be clear: I have very few answers and way more questions.
This place is meant to be a journal of my musings, explorations, reflections, and learnings. I hope to not only explore this inquiry through the philosophical, theological, cultural, and scientific lenses but to anchor it in the tactical and practical applications on how to live such a life. My hope is that these thoughts - primarily meant for gaining clarity for myself - will be helpful to others on a similar journey.
You've come to the right place If you're interested in exploring questions like:
what does it mean to be (fully) human in the 21st century?
how can we live a life of purpose and meaning?
how do we integrate our work, faith, family, fitness into a coherent life?
how can we live intentionally, driven by our own values?
how can we uniquely contribute to our family, society, and work?
what does a life well-lived mean for me?
what are my values, why do they matter and how do integrate them more into my everyday life?
You likely:
are an overachiever/over-performer leading yourself, your family and/or a group at work
have an intense personality and typically are "all in" when you commit to something
are better at "doing" but struggle to "be"
want to live more intentionally, be more contemplative, and desire to develop a greater inner life
want to integrate more poetry, philosophy, theology, art and beauty in your life
are a nerd and are interested in this subject :)
What to Expect
I aim to publish something at least monthly (hopefully more often!)
Musings are meant to be a bit more refined in processed thoughts. We're already inundated with incessant, immediately available posts that scratch the surface of every imaginable topic. Plus with a a young family and a startup to lead, I aim to make this project sustainable and fun.
Posts will often be constructed in terms of essays of reflection, reviews of interesting books, podcasts or articles, and because I want to begin integrating more beauty in my life, will likely include poetry, art, and music that have had an impact on me.
All of this is to say is that you will be joining me on the buffet of life which will not be focused on one kind of topic, niche, or medium. While there is nothing new under the sun, I hope to remind of us what is true about ourselves and our world. How that will play out I have no idea.
I hope you will be engaged with me in this endeavor - send me questions to explore; poetry, art, music, articles, books, podcasts or whatever you come across that you think would be helpful in this journey; and feedback on how to make this better!
Like most things in life, this adventure will be more enjoyable if we do travel together in community.
Provisos
This is a personal exercise of making explicit the implicit. What I write about will evolve as my thinking (contemplation!) evolves. Nothing is final and I reserve the right to change my mind as I continue to learn. I hope we all do.
Obligatory Note: views expressed are my own and do not reflect official positions I hold or have held (e.g. CEO of Forte; board member, US Marine etc) .
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