His family trusted me with his care, but I knew little about my patient, except that he would die without a mechanical pump to support his failing heart. He had undergone unsuccessful emergency coronary bypass surgery elsewhere before being transferred to our hospital.

I believe that curiosity, wonder and passion are defining qualities of imaginative minds and great teachers; that restlessness and discontent are vital things; and that intense experience and suffering instruct us in ways that less intense emotions can never do.

The recent commissioning of the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier was a perfect blend of ceremony, reunion, and nostalgia.