The Chesapeake shine

a few shots of late spring

I am delighted to announce two speakers for Timely Topics in the near future. AMB James B. Smith, U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between 2009 and 2014, agreed to update us on what thinking in Riyadh led to recent developments such as the revitalised Saudi-Iranian relationship and what this means for future developments.

National Bureeau of Asian Research president, Roy Kamphausen, and I agreed in late March to do a podcast on what it’s like being an attache’ in China. This week we decided including Arminda Kamphausen, Director of Global and Sustainability Initiatives in the University of Connecticut School of Business, will highlight what role spouses and children play in an attache’s tour overseas. It ought be absolutely fascinating.

I hope to confirm a date for each this week. I also thank Dr. Bernard Cole, Dr. Bill Hill, COL Dave Maxwell, Dr. Cassandra Lewis, and Col Adam Oler for their previous discussions which helped us understand several topics more fully. Still soliciting your interests, too, of course.

Thank you each for reading, especially for supporting this Substack, and registering your thoughts. I had an extended conversation with one of you last night on yesterday’s column. His probing made me refine my thinking even further but it’s been an intense 24 hours since China. Today, I want to take a day of gratitude rather than something possibly so heavy.

We drove to Delaware today, passing through the hamlets so small they did not even have names as far as we could tell. Most of the trip included passing by farm stands that are beginning to shut down the ‘planting’ stage in favour of preparing for the ‘harvested bounty’. Same is true here in Annapolis.

So what are we seeing at this point? Beauty and grace.

I am the luckiest woman in the world. See you tomorrow. FIN