If you are lucky, you will have one teacher in life who changes everything, and you end-up carrying their influences with you until your last days. I was lucky enough to have two. One was Mary Donovan, my high school English teacher. The other was Prof. Kerry Dugan at Northeastern. He died on January 12, 2023.
I was a philosophy major in college, and Prof. Dugan was one of my philosophy professors. He introduced me to Plato, Heidegger, Camus, Kierkegaard, Neichze, Laozi/Tao Teh Ching, Alan Watts, and countless others. He changed the way I viewed the world and myself (and how those two interact with each other). He opened doors I continue to walk through. Without question, he was one of the biggest influences in my life. I would not be the person I am today without him. While I am quite sad, I am forever grateful that our paths crossed. I owe so much to him, and his impact will be with me (and countless others) until I pass from this world.
Godspeed, Prof. Dugan…and thank you.
