As a writer in search of novel ideas that reflect our world and the significance of its past, I have recently found myself struggling to comment upon anything of importance without encountering…
During my days at Malibu Park Junior High School, some of my classmates decided that I should go by the nickname of John Boy. I am almost certain that there were only…
A teacher colleague whose job description was similar to my own once lamented that she was burdened with so many responsibilities that she would be unable to teach a designated unit on…
Forgive me for the details on this one but I have repeatedly told this story to eighth graders over several years and the veracity of the parts of the story that get…
An opening line from the 1995 film Braveheart warns us that “history is written by those who have hanged heroes.” What follows, then, is intended as a correction to the historical record;…
Did you know that bricks have been in use for about 9,000 years? The earliest known bricks were discovered near Damascus, Syria. The Romans used bricks for the construction of archways and…
In 1974 I found myself traveling through Arkansas on my way to California. Since I wasn’t old enough to drive, I hitched a ride with a man driving a large truck. He…
As a history teacher for 25 years, I had the opportunity to witness the evolution of parenting from the late 1980s into the second decade of the twentieth century. For some odd…
Once upon a time, when many of my waking hours were spent with adolescents, I found myself at odds with the boss. To him, the young people in our care were best…
It has been some time since so much hate has been on such bold display in the town square. White nationalists wave a collection of flags – stitched in cloth, all catching…