Thank You Teachers!
I am haunted by the ghosts of my teachers. As I research my book on USS Franklin, I find myself putting into practice the concepts they taught me. I cannot go against what I learned from them; I feel guilt when I do.
My Algebra and Geometry teachers taught me problem-solving. My English teachers taught me grammar and sentence construction and started me on writing. My English and History teachers taught me how to research, including how and when to use citations. (I’m still upset about that A- I received on my paper about George Custer, but it was my fault for not correctly citing facts. Lesson learned; behavior changed, Miss Barnett!)
I’m writing this book to raise the visibility of the courage and leadership displayed onboard USS Franklin by its crew and the crews of the other ships that came to its aid on 19 March 1945. I follow academic practices as I know them and do my best to leave no stone unturned in my research. I will be as accurate as I possibly can.
On this, the last day of National Teacher Appreciation Week, I pause and remember all my teachers, from kindergarten through college, who taught me even when I didn’t want to learn. I hope they would be pleased by how much I remember, even though I graduated from high school more than 50 years ago.
Did you arrive here via a search engine? I am the author of the forthcoming book Heroes By The Hundreds: The Story of the USS Franklin (CV-13). In addition to writing about the bravery of the crews that saved her, I will discuss the lessons we can learn in leadership and decision-making and the changes the US Navy made because of those lessons.
Feel free to follow me on Facebook. There, I am M. Glenn Ross, Author. I also write a monthly newsletter, Glenn’s After-Action Report, about subjects I find interesting in my research. You can sign up for it below. Feel free to leave a comment or ask a question. Thanks for reading.
-Glenn