Beginnings and Endings
Today I will begin a new chapter – and I’m looking forward to it. It has been rewarding to serve as the City of Houston’s Chief Recovery and Resilience Officer. And to work on important projects aimed at making Houston safer for everyone. The task of enhancing the resilience of this region is not […]
Disaster Belonging
Perhaps what drives me the most crazy in the current culture is the erosion of any overarching alignment, any sense of common good. We need more call to shared purpose. The absence of a sense of purpose leads to paying a kind of exquisite attention to one’s own SELF. Fostering the ludicrous notion that one’s […]
Reality is on the Ground
Not in the headlines It doesn’t take long to learn to wall oneself off from criticism and snark. In my case about nine months. I try to hang on to the belief that people, even reporters, ask genuine questions and want to understand. I continue to behave that way but now I know better. There’s […]
Working
There are days when the world is just too much to think about and I put my head down and just do the work in front of me. It’s a family trait to carry ourselves through the world as if we can outwork every problem. Our confidence comes from having done just that on so […]
What Patriotism Looks Like
Yesterday reminded me once again that people don’t protest in countries they don’t love and believe in. I saw yesterday an outpouring of love and the still alive conviction that we can do better than what’s happening right now. A still alive rejection of any form of tyranny. Americans still prefer the imperfections and utter […]
Why Government Matters
Since the launch of the Department of Government Efficiency, I’ve been meaning to write a piece about, well, “government efficiency.” For those people who have had the privilege to work in the public sector, we know the breadth and depth of the challenges that our country faces and the commitment to service that enables public […]
Good Morning
Today is another full day of work and challenges. In a weird way I’m looking forward to it all. In another way my brain is saying “for goodness sake, you should be in your garden. What is all this stressful working nonsense?” Working at the city is a huge challenge. The biggest adjustment and most […]
Community Development and Engagement
Keith Downey always has something good to share – because he’s busy setting an example for everyone who cares about neighborhoods and community. Keith’s advice regarding the activation of the City of Houston Superneighborhood organization is so important. As people seek to interact with city government, using the available structures matters. When ideas and feedback […]
Angels and Hogs
Growing older comes with nine kinds of losses. I often find myself sad. Unaccountably sad. Inexplicably sad. The rate of loss is such that I can’t quite keep up with the mourning. And then I remember. None of this was meant to last forever. I remember infinity and that there are angels amongst us. People […]
I Love Us. Still.
Waking to tragedy. Another day of epidemic of violence and destruction. This is our story. It’s not our only story, but as a species, we seem to have a lust for blood and destruction. Perpetual outbreaks. Another insane person weaponizing their personhood, tossing their soul on a pyre to take as many as possible with […]