I’ve been writing a lot less here. I suppose life gets in the way, you know. Change in job; kids getting a little more demanding; prioritising running a little more than writing.
But, you know… excuses (though the last point above regarding priorities probably is accurate — life’s gotten a little topsy-turvy of late and I’ve had to make sacrifices, and writing (for public) has been one of the things that took a cut).
Anyway, I’ve been reading a lot, and some of the books that I’ve read have been significantly perspective-changing for me, especially with regards to education.
For some perspective, I’ve long been a fan of meritocracy and education (and have had a fun time in my life chasing credentials — not that I was very good at it), and my emphasis when it came to giving for good, i.e. charitable giving, had often leaned toward empowerment through opportunity and education.
But one book that totally changed that was Head, Hand, Heart, which made me realise how my ideas of what made sense in this world was not only a recent invention, but that it didn’t make sense in every (or even most) context(s).
Where before I thought smarts should rule the world, I am now not so certain and find myself doubting strongly held beliefs I had up until just a few months ago.
For some reason I chose to follow up that book with The Tyranny of Meritocracy, which covered so much of the same ground — quite serendipitously, mind you — but from a different angle. (As an aside, I also love the fact that the authors are quite distinct, at least superficially, and the British perspective from David Goodhart was refreshing).
Till next time.
Donn, fragments 
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