Visiting Author: Michael Easter | Avon Old Farms News | About Us | Avon Old Farms

There are several reasons why Michael Easter was a perfect candidate to bring to Avon Old Farms through the Visiting Author Program. His book titled, The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self, was chosen as this past summer’s all-school read. It uses the narrative of extreme expeditions to explore the modern tendency to avoid discomfort and how this profoundly impacts our lives. His visit is particularly significant, as his message resonates with our school motto, aspirando et perseverando — to aspire and persevere.

Easter began his visit on Monday, December 9, with a presentation for the whole community in the Susan Casey Brown Auditorium. He summarized the plot and purposes of his book and spelled out what lessons he hopes students take away from his visit.

“Be adventurous,” Easter said. “Be willing to go into the unknown. That’s where all the interesting things are.”

He began his address with an anecdote about his apprehension to get on a small plane with the engine noise of a 1980s lawnmower to be dropped off in a remote part of the Alaskan tundra. He then rewound to his childhood to discuss the alcoholism that affected first his parents and then himself. He shared that while he was going through the difficult ordeal of getting sober, he happened to be working at Men’s Health Magazine and realized there were some similarities between what he was going through and what he was writing about. “I realized that effort or short-term discomfort are required to earn a greater reward,” he said.

Easter then went on to explain how this idea shaped a new philosophy for him that he began to pursue further through research of past and current events, and embarking on his own trips out of his comfort zone. His presentation included photos and videos from his various expeditions.

In The Comfort Crisis, Easter argues that true growth and fulfillment come not from seeking comfort but from embracing the challenges that push us beyond our perceived limits — something he illustrates for readers as he takes them along on a caribou hunting expedition in the Alaskan Arctic. He says, “Constant comfort is a radically new thing for us humans – about 0.03 percent of the time we’ve walked on earth.”

Then Easter asks readers, “What could cleansing ourselves of these comforts do for us?”

This philosophy aligns perfectly with Avon’s commitment to encouraging students to aspire to greatness and persevere through adversity. By intentionally stepping out of our comfort zones, we can cultivate resilience, determination, and a sense of purpose — qualities that are essential for success in all aspects of life.

Dean of Studies Graham Callaghan ’95 led the Visiting Author selection process this year, bringing names and titles to Avon’s administration for consideration. He explains further why Easter was a perfect candidate. “Ultimately, we decided on Michael Easter because he is a journalist, and we felt The Comfort Crisis is a good story that our general school population will enjoy,” comments Callaghan. “Easter is a teaching professor in the school of journalism at UNLV and has been featured in popular news programs, so I knew he would be an engaging speaker to have on campus. The Comfort Crisis also covers a variety of areas of interest, so it has a great chance of resonating in some respect with a large group of people. Finally, his book works well with our Health and Wellness/Character curriculum. Resilience was a theme of our programming last year, and Easter’s book interestingly explores our tendency to seek out comfort at all costs, which can be a barrier to fulfilling our potential.”

For high school boys, The Comfort Crisis offers an invaluable lesson in the importance of facing challenges head-on. In an age of instant gratification and convenience, Easter’s message serves as a powerful reminder that the most rewarding experiences often involve enduring hardship and pushing through discomfort. His book provides practical advice and inspiring stories that can help Avonians develop the mental and physical fortitude necessary to navigate the complexities of life with confidence and courage.

In the latter half of his presentation to the entire school, Easter spelled out four basic rules for those in attendance. The first is to be a “two-percenter,” which refers to a study that found only two percent of adults will choose to take the stairs when an escalator is available. The second rule is to overcome the “scarcity loop,” which refers to how slot machines (and many other things in life) are designed to keep you occupied in a negative way. The third is to embrace boredom. This was paired with a reminder for students to be aware of their phone usage and avoid too much screen time. The final lesson is to “find your misogi.” What Easter meant by this is that you should try to take on a challenge to better yourself at least once a year.

He concluded his presentation with a call back to how he began it. He shared that after his Alaskan expedition had concluded, when that same sketchy plane began its descent onto the tundra to pick him up, he felt nothing but joy and relief and ran to it.

Easter’s talk was inspirational and gave students plenty to reflect on. “I thought it was pretty good. It was cool to see the perspective of someone who understands the benefits of not being on your phone too much,” shares senior day-student Jacob Giuliano ’25.

“The concept of embracing boredom and how that actually can lead to more productivity really stood out to me.”

After his morning address, Easter spent the rest of the day meeting with smaller groups of students for more intimate Q&A sessions. Student questions ranged from asking about what goes into writing a book to learning what kinds of animals he has encountered in the wild. “I was shocked by the number of questions and the level of those questions,” Easter admits. “These are really great students here. And the campus is beautiful.”

To learn more about this year’s visiting author, please visit his website at eastermichael.com. To view photos from Michael Easter’s visit, click here.

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