Honoring John F. Kennedy

Friday, November 22nd is a very nostalgic day for me as I am old enough to have lived through the shooting of President John F. Kennedy. I don't remember the shooting itself, but I remember the funeral.

I was just six, but I was drawn to the TV, watching the event unfold for several hours. I remember the day as clearly as if it was yesterday. I did not know, at the time, what was going on. I just knew in my little six-year-old heart that it was bad. Really bad.

It was before I got my first pair of glasses -- that was second grade -- and the TV was a little blurry, but even so, I couldn't take my eyes off our black and white television as I sat cross-legged on the floor in front of it.

It was a tumultuous time, but I hope the short time we had him made us a better country. President Kennedy, I salute you. May you, and your family, continue to rest in peace. 

Please check out my novel, In Fashion's Web on Amazon.

Three Cups of Tea: The Most Inspiring Book I've Ever Read

This book has changed me on so many levels. First, it is the first book to ever take us inside Pakistan and Afghanistan to show us the people, their customs and their culture. While I've always respected Muslims, now I understand them more than I ever did.

Second, through the book, after having "met" Greg Mortenson. I feel I am a more well-rounded person knowing who he is and what he is doing. I am so impressed, amazed and awed by him I would value meeting him as much as I would value meeting President Obama. The things he has accomplished in his lifetime are Nobel Peace Prize worthy and if he doesn't win it, I will be disappointed.

At first, I really enjoyed being able to witness the way someone else lives. I live in a big city and sometimes people tend to think that everyone lives the way we do. Greg Mortenson's life could not be more different from mine. The child of American missionaries, he grew up in Tanzania and as an adult, became a successful mountain climber. The mountains of Pakistan, where some of the tallest peaks in the world are, became a second home to him, a place where he was so comfortable, he fit right in, sleeping on floors, living without running water and dressing, out of respect, in their cultural clothing.

After mountain climbing and a career as a nurse, he literally fell into a new career, building schools for girls, first in Pakistan and then in Afghanistan, through a nonprofit he cofounded called the Central Asia Institute. While all of us over here have wondered about the people on the borders where we fought and dropped missiles, he was there, among the people, seeing it all from the inside out and fighting terror through education, not war.

I now consider Greg Mortenson an influencer I want to follow. My first instinct was to look for him on LinkedIn and Twitter. He's not there. My second instinct is to make a donation to Central Asia Institute, and that is something I will definitely do.

In the meantime, I highly recommend this book for EVERYONE. You can get it at your local library or at Amazon.

Please check out my novel, In Fashion's Web on Amazon.