I’ve started the new year by making some changes. While preparing my audiobook I read several passages several times. Many had a common theme. I offer a ton of advice but upon personal reflection I’ve determined that I seldom follow it. It’s a kind of do as I say, not as I do, approach. I’m …
The 24-Hour Rule
When I was Superintendent in Britton-Macon, one of the coaches had a “24-hour rule”. He invoked it with upset parents. Most such parents wanted to talk in the heat of the moment. They were concerned with a disciplinary issue or their son’s lack of playing time. The coach thought waiting to handle the discussion would …
Somewhere Out in Space
My audiobook is finished. You can’t purchase it yet, but it’s somewhere out in space. I started working on it about three months ago, and I gave my approval to the product last Monday. It’s making its way through Amazon’s process. They’re in total control now. They set the release date and price but once …
Toasting The New Year
I ran across this the other day. Ruth had it posted on a bulletin board in our Florida home. She saved such words because they spoke to her. I’m sharing it with you on New Years Day. I think it’s a fitting way to begin 2025. May you always have…
A Revelation
I had a mini revelation on Christmas Eve. Michael, Kate, Jackson and I were getting in the car to join Elizabeth and Sutton on the beach at Dana Point for the second year in a row when I flashed back to Michael’s first Christmas. Ruth and my David was almost the same age as young …
My Christmas Card
Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoy the holidays wherever you may be. I’m drafting this before I head west to be with my California kids, so I’ll keep this short. Remember… Love, Rob, Bob, Dad, TGO
The Salesman
The summer before my final year of college, I landed a sales job. There was an ad in the local paper looking for college men seeking summer employment. The ad provided an outline of a group interview at an office in Ferndale, Michigan. I called the contact number, and after answering a few questions, I …
Our Connection
All I knew about Dr. Becker was what I learned in two seventy-five-minute classes held twice a week for fifteen weeks in the fall of 1967. The only thing I knew about his family was they were expecting a foreign exchange student to arrive within a couple of weeks after I completed my junior year …
Dr. Becker
During my time in higher education, I earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University, a master’s degree from Eastern Michigan and a specialist degree from Michigan State. I took a lot of classes. I remember two instructors from all that time. Dr. Alan was my advisor for my specialist degree, and Dr. Becker taught …
December Memory
The month of December brings up a slew of memories from my seventy-seven years. Most are positive, but I’m happy to have some in my rearview mirror. The selective service draft held on December 1, 1969 is one of those. I had started teaching in the fall of that year and had a deferment because …