This brief commentary on the target paper by Dowell and Long presents a more optimistic view of the state of cognitive systems engineering. Ontological foundations associated with circular causality and a shift in values toward greater ecological validity distinguish cognitive systems engineering from classical cognition and human factors. Important exemplars of cognitive systems engineering are identified. Rich narrative accounts (stories) of natural work domains are presented as a critical vehicle for generalizations and a precursor to more formal symbolic systems such as those that are emerging from the field of dynamical systems.