Many of us associate fall or autumn with changes. Endings and beginnings. It happens around us and in us. Farm fields sprout those large orangey-colored things on which people love to carve scary faces. The green leaves of summer transform into an array of golds, browns, and reds. These colorful reminders of mortality then drop … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—Autumn Urges For Going And Doing
TURNING POINTS—And Open Admissions
Three years ago, Wild River Books launched Open Admissions: What Teaching at Community College Taught Me About Learning at Philadelphia’s historic Mermaid Inn, home to my own Sacred CowBoys and numerous other Philly-based performers. The occasionally raucous event featured a conversation with Community College of Philadelphia Vice President Judith Gay and me about the importance … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—And Open Admissions
TURNING POINTS—What a French Mother of Seven and Cook Has Given the World
Lucie “Lulu” Tempier Peyraud died Wednesday morning, two months before her 103rd birthday. After she married Lucien Peyraud in 1936, her father gave the couple a farm property on which to live. Through decades of hard work there, the couple and their seven children developed a world-class vineyard and successful family business. Lulu cooked for … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—What a French Mother of Seven and Cook Has Given the World
TURNING POINTS—On the Path to a COVID Vaccine and to a Career
The learning process implies change. Once we’ve learned something, we aren’t quite the same person anymore, whether we’ve learned how to solve an equation, play tennis, make a vinaigrette, change a flat tire, or speak a second language. A recent article in the Philadelphia Inquirer tells the story of immigrant Yaya Dia, who now plays … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—On the Path to a COVID Vaccine and to a Career
TURNING POINTS—America’s Greatest Economic/Educational Counter to The COVID Recession Is Its Community Colleges
COVID-19 has changed the work and employment landscape in the US and elsewhere, but our network of community colleges may provide the resource we need to re-train displaced workers and to enable degree-seeking students a chance to take valuable steps toward their goal. Last week, reader Rich Conti steered the Turning Points conversation toward David … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—America’s Greatest Economic/Educational Counter to The COVID Recession Is Its Community Colleges
TURNING POINTS—COVID Not What America’s Most Vulnerable College Students Need
COVID-19 has changed life as we know it this year—and mostly in very undesirable ways. That statement might be one of the few things about which Americans can agree this year. The virus has provided a turning point for millions of people, launching us onto unexpected paths that--for some--involve only inconvenience, isolation, and anxiety--but for … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—COVID Not What America’s Most Vulnerable College Students Need
TURNING POINTS—Riding and Rallying for Recovery
This Saturday morning, motorcycle riders will gather for the third year in a row at the parking lot at Fisher Engineering in Rockland, Maine. Together, they’ll ride to Pemaquid Point Lighthouse and its appealing craggy shoreline with views of the blue, blue ocean. The lighthouse will provide the ride’s turning point. … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—Riding and Rallying for Recovery
TURNING POINTS—Hoping Through Hard Times
A few years ago, I read Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy, a challenging experience that pulled me through a wider range of intellectual and emotional moments than most other serious books. As its subtitle says, it is A Story of Justice and Redemption—always the kind of story we need but especially now in these strange days. … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—Hoping Through Hard Times
TURNING POINTS–Rescuers Update
Yesterday's post referenced the rescue activity done everyday by state game wardens, often harrowing and demanding work. These largely unsung men and women routinely perform critical life-saving work, and after posting yesterday, Kathleen showed me an article about a very recent emergency in which the Maine game wardens did their usual job. https://www.penbaypilot.com/article/maine-warden-service-emergency-rescue-crews-assist-injured-hiker-who-fell-30-feet-mox/133192. (Main photo: … Continue reading TURNING POINTS–Rescuers Update
TURNING POINTS—Earth Day and Earth Rescuers
Celebrated on this date in 1970, the first Earth Day prompted a half-century of environment-conscious efforts that have resulted in what most would consider needed changes and improvements on our planet. It was certainly a turning point both culturally and individually for thousands then and many more since April 22, 1970. In Philadelphia, the occasion … Continue reading TURNING POINTS—Earth Day and Earth Rescuers
