I am an airline pilot for one of the major airlines. During Covid I suddenly found myself with a lot of free time on my hands. To fill this time I volunteered at a nearby drug-rehab ministry for men. This decision would prove to be life-changing.

My job there was simple. I would spend time with the men, get to know them and mentor them. This was a difficult task at first. It took awhile for the men to accept me into their midst and to open up. Before long I became a familiar face and in return they transformed from nameless faces to individuals, each with a story.

Many had fairly horrid histories, though not all. Many had no leadership figure to help guide them though this complicated maze we call life, though not all could make that claim. Some didn’t seem to have a will of their own. I’m not sure where that came from. The issues were myriad and the problems were diverse. The outlook for all but a few was more often than not bleak, even if they did manage to gain some semblance of control over themselves.

Early on I was warned by the staff that I would love these men, and that many would die, and it would break my heart. From the perspective of the sterile world in which I existed at the time this was a difficult thing to believe. But it turned out to be true. This would be time spent on the front lines against every sort of evil. Men I knew and loved dying around me became a common occurrence. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to speak about it without tears.

This blog draws from many of the discussions that I had with these men. My goal is to keep each post below 500 words. As I write I see my audience as mainly young men who’ve had no training in wisdom in the work place. My mission is shorter, bite-size articles with the aim of self-analysis, self-correction and a challenge to see and experience the possibilities that present themselves when we seek wisdom and understanding.

We will spend much of our lives “at work” and I am convinced that there will always be room to improve our attitudes about being there, which in turn improves our overall outlook on life. The benefits we reap from this outlook will flow naturally from being happier human beings. When we are happier human beings we become happier servants* which makes us even happier human beings yet. The end result helps us to not seek escape from the drudgery of “making a living”, but rather to embrace the beauty and self-fulfillment we naturally gain from serving our fellow man.

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*There is intentionality in my use of the word “servant“. I believe that one way to improve our outlook while on the job is to realize that, no matter what our profession, in the end we serve others. As an airline pilot, for example, I serve our passengers. In our current times we tend to reject the very idea of being a servant. But I believe that by embracing the idea we have taken an important step toward happiness in the work place and at home.