Once again, I had a great experience at John Wood Community College Thursday. Mike Terry asked me to speak at his English class and I talked about interviewing people, since the students have to talk to somebody and then write a story.
After talking to the students, I learned one of them is from New York City. He was very young on 9/11. But I'm sure he's got a story or two to tell. It's one of the most significant events in world history, and he was there.
Another young man hails from Joplin, Mo. It's hard to believe its been nearly five years since the tornado blasted through town. The young man said his family knew people who were killed. I'm sure just about everybody in Joplin knows somebody that was killed. You watch the news and you are horrified, but we weren't actually there. How would you like to talk to somebody who has first-hand knowledge about that horrible day?
Two of the students are interviewing grandparents. One of them lives in Quincy and landed in Normandy during D-Day. Again, this is one of the most important dates in history. Mike and I encouraged the young man to record his conversation and talk to his grandfather as much as possible about it - fewer and fewer of our WWII vets are left. The student isn't just interviewing his grandfather about the war - he's capturing it forever and possibly the last time.
Yet another student in the class is from Serbia. Do you have any idea what has been going on there? Do you even know where it is located? Maybe you should get to know this region of the world. The student didn't get into too much detail, but he did mention a day in 1999 when NATO bombed the city where he lived.There are fascinating stories everywhere, even in the rocking chair community of Quincy, Illinois.
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