You and your phone are not one and the same: Thoughts for the Day, June 15, 2026

Your phone is not who you are.

When I was waiting in the front lobby at University of Michigan Hospital on the day of Katy’s and Kacy’s transplant surgery in mid-May, I had the chance to observe hundreds of people coming and going through the hospital’s front door. With a piano playing in the background, it is a great place to sit, relax and observe. It is also a great place to help patients and their guests get to where they need to go. Patients don’t want to be there, and the size of the place can be overwhelming. The looks on their faces are silently screaming for assistance.

One of the things that jumped out at me was that a large portion of the employees who were coming and going by the front entrance never stopped to ask a patient if they could help them. These employees never noticed the look on the patients’ faces because the employees had their faces buried in their phones. Whatever was happening on their phone was more important than helping a patient. It made me sad.

Other than sharing my observation with two former hospital employees, Sue and Judy, I have kept the observation to myself. However, yesterday, I read an article by Mitch Albom, which hits home about the same point. The following are excerpts from Albom’s article titled A commencement address for today’s high school grads.

Congratulations, graduates:

Thank you for asking me to speak at your high school commencement. You all look great — and so young! It’s a sign of age when teenagers look younger than they are, while you yourself look older than you imagine. But age also allows me to share the following thoughts, which I hope one day you will remember as worthwhile.

My own high school graduation was exactly five decades ago this week. I still remember that day, which is good, because we took pictures with an Instamatic camera, and I have no idea where those few photos are now. There was no video. No iPhones or Androids. It wasn’t streamed or uploaded. You were there or you missed it.

Which is where I want to begin. Being present. Eyes forward. Neck straight. If there is a first piece of good advice for the Class of 2026, it is this:

Put the phone away.

Live life. Don’t pose it. Experience things. Don’t scroll them. Life is not a screen, but it surely has become one. If it’s not recorded today, it seemingly doesn’t count. If you can’t share it, it’s diminished.

Apple developed the first front-facing camera iPhone in 2010. Most of you were 2 years old. Which means you are the first Selfie Generation.

Maybe you like that.

But I believe something was lost when we stopped needing people to take our pictures and started doing it ourselves. It heralded the age of making us the center of everything, and the way we presented to the world being more important than how we truly looked or felt inside.

What matters now is how you are perceived, how many friends and likes you have, how many clicks and reposts you earn.

This isn’t healthy. Yours is not the first generation to worry about image. Just the first to make it a religion.

Walk away. Put the phone down. Try an hour a day without being online. Then two. Then four. Witness how an unplugged world changes light.

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Don’t buy what he is selling.

Prior to 2018, the United States was part of The JCPOA, which imposed restrictions on Iran’s civilian nuclear enrichment program in exchange for sanctions relief, was signed on July 14, 2015. It was agreed to by Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States -- as well as Germany and the European Union.

The JCPOA was designed to ensure that Iran’s nuclear program would be exclusively peaceful and provided for the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions in order to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. In 2018, President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the agreement. It wasn’t long after that Iran started plans to develop a nuclear weapon.

Prior to February 28, 2026, the Strait of Hormuz was open waters to all world traffic, gas was around $3 a gallon throughout the U.S., inflation was under 4% and heading downward, our military had $25 billion more than they have now, our munitions were well stocked. and our military was feared and respected.

On June 15, 2026, President Trump wants us to praise his negotiating skills because he has allegedly negotiated a memorandum of understanding that puts the U.S. in worse standing with Iran than existed prior to February 28, 2026, with little or no possibility of getting the U.S. close to the safety the JCPOA offered the U.S. and the world prior to Trump tearing up the JCPOA in 2018.

The great dealmaker he is not. The facts speak for themselves. Don’t buy what he is selling.

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Quick Thoughts

The New York Knicks NBA playoff run was impressive. During the playoffs, they went 16-3, including 15-1 in their last 16 games. The Knicks are a team that has been forged like steel with championship caliber players. Led by the three Villanova alum, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mykal Bridges, the Knicks know how to win, even when they are down by 29 points.

With the Knicks winning the NBA championship, the Piston can take great pride in how they played the Knicks during the regular season. The Pistons were 3-0 against the Knicks with an average margin of victory of 28 points, which is not a typo. The Pistons have a lot to build on following their 60-win season.

In case you were wondering, I did not buy any of Space X stock last week during their initial public offering. I didn’t even think about it.

In case you were wondering, I did not watch the UFC fights on the lawn of the White House. The thought never crossed my mind.

In case you didn’t know, golf can be diabolical. Today, in a pro-am at Crooked Tree, I struck the ball extremely well as I hit lots of fairways and greens, unfortunately, I putted like I had stone hands. I had no touch and no feel. It was pathetic at best.

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Contact your Congressperson

Contact your congressman by following these easy steps This can be done in a few easy steps.

Step 1: find your congressman by clicking on this link, Find Your Representative | house.gov

Step 2: Put your zip code in the proper space.

Step 3: Click the button “find your representative””

Step 4: In the new page that comes up you will see a picture of your congressman. Click on your congressman’s name under the picture.

Step 5: In the new page that comes up, Click on Contact Me at the top of the page and then click on Email me.

Step 6: Fill out the information as required.

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Quote of the Day: “Sometimes you have to lose control, to get control.” Crooked Tree Head Pro, Corey May talking about the golf swing. To me, it applies to more than the golf swing.

Orchid of the Day: The New York Knicks. An impressive playoff run.

Onion of the Day: The driver who fled the scene after hitting Katy’s car from behind while driving west on I-94 as Katy was taking Alaina and a friend to a softball game. No one was hurt, which we are so thankful for, especially considering Katy’s recent surgery. Katy now has to deal with the hassles of getting her car fixed.

Question of the Day: What kind of person leaves the scene of an accident in which they were at fault? How do they look themselves in the mirror?

Lyrics of the Day:

Maybe I’s just too demanding. Maybe I just like my father, too bold

Maybe, your just like my mother. She’s never satisfied

Why do we scream at each other?

This is what it sounds like, when …..

Lyrics of the Day for June 10, 2026. Somebody to Love by Jefferson Airplane

Video of the Day: Beyoncé - “Proud Mary” (Tina Turner Tribute) | 2005 Kennedy Center Honors