After several years of relative writing inactivity—save for my reporting for the Town and Country newspaper—I’ve gotten into a pretty good groove lately.
I am on the path to self-publishing my writings for the last 50 years or so by consolidating them into a paperback. This is definitely a legacy project, perhaps being distributed to family members.
I have chosen twenty-four writings of various genres: poetry, memoir, fictionalized memoir, satire, newspaper feature articles, essays, and even science fiction. The themes cover my educational experiences, my son’s addiction, family, coaching baseball, and pet peeves.
The working title is Whatever: The Art of Moving On.
Meaning? Some of the things I write about were out of my direct control, and the only thing I could do was move on from them. Hence, the title. Far from being dismissive, the title sums up one of the main lessons I have learned: For the better or for the worse, if something happens that cannot be changed, accept it and look forward; longing to change the unchangeable is pointless and distracting.
The first section of the book contains the following:
“The Closest Idealist” is a transcript of a speech I was asked to give by the school district superintendent on the first in-service day for Upper Perkiomen in 2008.
“Theme for AP” is a poem written along with one of my Advanced Placement English classes in 2006. I found that a good way to gain credibility with students is to do assignments with them and share my work.
“Not for Which We Stand” is a memoir about a former student who faced deportation, through no fault of her own. She won an extension from the courts, but in the long-term, I do not know what happened to her. This was pre-9/11 and the subsequent formation of ICE. Given the state of things in 2026, to me, the memoir is a reminder that each one of the people targeted by ICE is a human being with feelings, emotions, and dignity.
“The Education Planet” is a cathartic, fictionalized memoir encapsulating my thoughts on the gigantic cluster known as educational standardized testing. While the conversations and characters are fictional, my disdain is not.
“Reaching the Unteachable. Maybe” is based on my experiences as a high school English teacher while dealing with students who really do not want to be in school and see no value in it. The two students in the essay are fictional composites, as are the examples of their behaviors.
“The Girl Who Leapt” is a mostly true memoir about one of my favorite students. She has a brilliant mind and has/had a propensity for near disaster. Her name has been changed.
As I move forward, I will be publishing some excerpts.
The Q-View 