The Columbine shooting on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, occurred when two teens went on a shooting spree, killing 13 people and wounding more than 20 others, before turning their guns on themselves and committing suicide. The Columbine shooting was, at the time, the worst high school shooting in U.S. …
Author: Robert
I Hope He Never Does
The first gun I owned was a single shot BB gun that my Uncle Elmer gave me. He was my Aunt Dutch’s husband. I was about eight or nine and he made me promise to be careful with it. “Don’t point it at anyone. Just shoot at targets.” He backed up his warning by pushing …
My Fourth Quarter
I began what I expect to be the fourth quarter of my life last Sunday. I turned 75. I’ve reached an age when I see someone who says, “It’s good to see you.”, I reply, “It’s good to be seen.” My parents had a professional photographer take my picture to mark my first year. My hair …
More About David
David didn’t like school and did his best to do nothing. He wasn’t particularly gifted, but he showed signs of progress from time to time. I never let him just coast, so sometimes we didn’t get along. He wanted to do as little as possible and just get through the day. On one particularly challenging …
David
When I was teaching middle school, we taught in four person teams. There were four certified instructors representing one of four disciplines: math, science, social studies, and language arts. While I had a double major in the social sciences and English, I taught language arts for seven of my eight teaching years. I taught seventh …
A Priceless Gift
Last week, as we were preparing to head north for the summer, Ruth ran across an old Mother’s Day gift from David. He gave it to her when he was in elementary school. It’s a coupon book she’s never used. She brought it north, hoping to redeem a coupon or two. They read as follows: …
My Rolodex
When I landed my job in Addison, I spent a lot of time on the phone. I didn’t realize how many calls I’d have to field each day. The first several weeks I was inundated with vendors who hoped to strike up a relationship that would lead to future contracts. When I moved on to …
Senior Pranks
I’m not sure who came up with the idea of senior pranks, but I’m not a fan. As a former school superintendent, I never thought they were funny, and some were expensive to handle. The common explanation students offer up to justify their “pranks” at the end of their senior year is “we’re just having …
This Father’s Day
Yes, I know we just celebrated Mother’s Day. I truly hope every mother enjoyed their special day. Heaven knows they deserve all their accolades. It’s a difficult task. Once a mother, always a mother. The same holds true for fathers. That’s why I already know what I’m buying David for Father’s Day. A baseball bat. …
If You Don’t Know, It’s You
I’ve always believed if you don’t know who’s the worst player on your team – any team – it’s you. I played in a thirty-six hole four-man scramble over two days this week and felt that way more than once. Turns out I wasn’t. It’s not a stretch to call The Villages, Florida the golf …