Life is short! It’s much shorter than we might have thought when we first became aware that someday our lives would come to an end. Young lovers sometimes romanticize about marrying, raising families, and growing old together, but the reality of this last phase is not so romantic, as age brings with it a number of problems and realizations. And one of those realizations is that life is indeed short, and the time for accomplishments is running out.

Do you have a family cow? It’s quite likely that you don’t, and it’s likely that none of your neighbors do either. But if you lived in the 18th or 19th centuries, chances are you’d have a cow, a horse, or maybe an ox. You’d probably have some chickens. You’d certainly have a garden for vegetables, and a few acres of land on which to scratch out a living. In the late 1700s, there were roughly two million people living in the American colonies. The most populous colony was Virginia, with about 500,000 of those people.

It seems that no place is entirely safe from violence and terrorism. The memory of September 11, 2001 remains a painful scar on the national consciousness of the United States, but terrorism is a worldwide problem. In 2004, Madrid, Spain, experienced horrific train bombings that killed nearly 200 and injured 2,000 more. In 2007, dual bombings in Iraqi markets ripped apart 800 victims and injured about 1,500 more. In 2016, an ISIS-claimed attack killed 29 at a Bangladeshi café. ISIS-linked fighting rages in Mindanao, Philippines. Boko Haram has terrorized Nigeria for years.

Last year, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards (DofE) for young people entered its 60th year. In all that time it has become phenomenally successful, and has grown to be the world’s leading youth achievement award. Meanwhile, the Duke of Edinburgh, founder and patron of the programme, has, at age 96, announced his retirement from public engagements. Having devoted 70 years of his life to public service as the Queen’s husband and consort, he richly deserves a quieter life. It is widely recognized that the DofE Awards are one of his finest achievements and a potent legacy.

How is it that a small, island kingdom came to shape so much of modern civilization?