Below are thoughts I recently delivered to my small community’s leadership. Mayor Miller and Council Members, I had an opportunity to watch last week’s council meeting and noted the commentary pertaining to the continued flying of the Russian Federation (RF) flag at both ports of entry as well as within…

Throughout our lives, both personal and professional, we establish reputations, form expectations, and gain responsibilities; if we’re not careful this can lead us to mistaking busyness for purpose. If we’re fortunate enough to recognize this, hitting the pause button on life, even if only for a brief moment, can allow…

The Silver Waterfall, Captain Kevin P. Miller USN (ret). San Diego, CA. Braveship Books, 2020. Early on the morning of June 4th, 1942, the situation in the Pacific remained bleak for the United States. Though the Americans had found recent strategic successes with the Battle of Coral Sea (April) and…

Memorial Day stirs an array of emotions in many of us. There is no shortage of articles, essays, and interviews with pious voices imploring civilians to recognize that the holiday isn’t just about their barbecues and steep retail discounts. There are families who’ve suffered the unimaginable and find this day…

Below is a note I sent my squadron in 2020 on the occasion of Martin Luther King Jr Day. It was early in what would turn out to be an extremely difficult seven months at sea. I’ve since moved on into retirement, but this team is getting ready to head…

I spent the better part of 20 years thinking about landing jets on ships, preparing to land jets on ships, or actually landing jets on ships. During the day, this is the second most fun thing an adult can do, and most pilots can’t believe they get paid to do…

At first glance, it doesn’t seem there’s much common ground between the National Football League and the high stakes world of carrier aviation. However, when it comes to winning, they share a lot. Between 2005 and 2011 the New York Giants made five NFL playoff appearances and won the ultimate…

It’s difficult to find a pejorative that doesn’t apply to 2020. Some of the less explicit ones revolve around the wholly unpredictable nature of what the year’s thrown our way. Words like “unprecedented” and “unbelievable” have been tossed around quite a bit — and with good reason. And while we…

Two weeks ago I did one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my professional life — I left my job. In the same one-hour ceremony I turned over command of “my” squadron, and I retired from the Navy. …