11 Days to Christmas

Away in a manger...4  by 6 watercolor

12 days to Christmas

4 by 6 watercolor

La Catedral Basilica de San Francisco de Asis

a La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asis en Nuevo Mexico

One of my favorite places 

"Mentor" moments

Two ads with my name in them came out this week in the Oklahoma City Gazette and Edmond Life & Leisure, and the honor for me was being considered a "mentor" by this former student and others. I knew they were scheduled, and we'd approved the ad content ahead of time, but the idea of being a mentor is still sinking in. I'm just a professor trying to do my job with passion, helping students to learn and to grab their versions of success.
The best students are not defined by grades.  They excel because they are serious about learning, because they have passion, because they come to class, because they have a sense of humor, because they take responsibility for their actions, because they're not afraid to make mistakes, because they have discipline to stick to  tasks, because they are not afraid of hard work, because they are curious, because they will take risks. 
Many of my best students are married, or are single parents, or are veterans, or hold more than one job. Most of them are paying their own way and most of them  commute in between all of the rest of life. They earn their educations.
To be considered a mentor to such people is an honor. Good students matter.

Pearl Harbor thoughts

Ed Vezey, Oklahoma City

You can't go there and not cry. 
It's Dec. 7 every day in Pearl Harbor where the gleaming white USS Arizona Memorial straddles the hulk of the battleship, still oozing oil, and the coffin of more than 1,000 American sailors.
I was privileged to visit a few years ago when my Air Force son was stationed there. Since then I've been fortunate to meet Ed Vezey, a survivor of that day, a sailor on the USS Oklahoma.
That happened on the inaugural Honor Flight, a non profit organization taking WWII vets to see the memorials in Washington. Look at the hat he's wearing. There are so many stories. Check their web page for many photos of vets and the trips: http://oklahomahonorflights.org
I tried to tell the story of the honor flights in the November-December issue of Oklahoma Today, "Day of Honor." I've also written about the flight, with photos on the blog. Here is the first of the links from May, 2010.Veterans' stories.
It's been a long time ago--but I'm thankful for men like Ed Vezey who helps keep them alive. And for the Navy, and the silence and salutes as each ship passes that gleaming white monument.

Photo from the Honolulu Star Bulletin

20 degree walk in the park