"The first thing that comes to mind, and the only time I think I was truly at my best, is a moment of maybe a few seconds. I had already signed up to serve in the Navy but was on a 9-month delay due to the nuances of the nuclear program. During that time, I met my wife and my now 26-year-old son. He was a month old.

In that moment, when I met them and heard her story, I decided to take care of them and serve them. In those few seconds, as I planned to serve my country and my future wife and child, I had a pure mind and goal, untarnished by selfishness or other self-serving iniquities; I was at my best."