Reaching Lifelong Goals as a Nontraditional Student

Christmas 2011, in a few short years we will be visiting the 100th anniversary of the Great War and now is the time for all good historians to point their research in this direction.  As a special Christmas gift, I am rerunning one of my favorite blog entries about the Christmas Truce of 1914.  Please take the time to listen to the music, and check out the excellent websites that are highlighted.  Be sure to listen to these moving songs in a place where no one can see you weep like a baby…or not, be proud of your tears and let the whole family see! 

As a World War One Historian, I would be remiss by not passing on the story of the Christmas Truce of 1914.   Although these truces have been observed throughout conflicts in history, the 1914 truce is unique in military history, due to the close proximity of the combatants in the trenches.  The  story of the World War One truce is noteworthy.   The Christmas Truce has been researched by WWI Historians trying to chronicle the true events and separating the myths.   In my Non Traditional Student History Major way, I was moved to publish this story by viewing a very emotional You Tube video posted by a friend on Facebook.   I urge you to take the few minutes to view this video called  “Christmas in the Trenches.” This song was written by a WWI soldier named Francis Tolliver, and it is very moving.  This started a research session as a History Major even during my Christmas Break from college.    My search also yielded a couple more  pieces dedicated to this Christmas event during the Great War.  “Christmas in no man’s Land” is another ballad about the Truce in 1914, well worth a listen.  And to my surprise, Paul McCartney wrote “Pipes of Piece” in 1983 and produced a wonderful video about the event.   Being a WWI historian,  and a child of the era, I still get a lump in my throat every Christmas when I hear “Snoopy vs. the Red Baron” by the Royal Guardsmen, I know, I’m a softie/geek!     These You Tube videos are my History Major gifts to all of you this season, I hope that they will make you stop and think of our troops in far away countries this holiday season.

The actual history of the Christmas Truce has been covered quite well on the internet.   I have found many wonderful sites that tell the story of this event.   Many of the sites have most of the information correct as we know it today.   One site in particular, “The Christmas Truce “ is probably the most complete and historically accurate.    Another description from a Scottish Blogger, Jimmy is well written and worth taking a look at:

The year is 1914 and World war 1 has been going on for 4 months,soldiers from Germany and Britain, living in mud filled trenches suffering from the cold weather,the chill of the icy rain pouring down on them, with the rain comes the constant shell bombardment from both sides,snipers picking off their targets death is everywhere hope is nowhere. Suddenly around 10pm after the guns had fallen silent,singing could be heard from the German trenches,

Christmas eve and the German soldiers were singing Carols,and after a while the British joined in singing in English, for the first time in four months there was hope in the air.  Day light came on Christmas morning, the soldiers from both trenches lay aside their arms got out of the trenches and walked into no man’s land, about half way between the trenches, they shook hands and exchanged cigarettes and chocolate whilst wishing each other a merry Christmas, a soccer ball was produced and both sides played soccer this went on for a while,slowly both sides dispersed back to their own respective trenches.  The next day the shelling started again and the war was back on. The miracle of peace and goodwill to all men never meant so much as it did on Christmas day 1914.

The website, “Eyewitness to History” has an excellent account by  British Soldier, Frank Richards of the events that day:

“On Christmas morning we stuck up a board with ‘A Merry Christmas’ on it. The enemy had stuck up a similar one. Platoons would sometimes go out for twenty-four hours’ rest – it was a day at least out of the trench and relieved the monotony a bit – and my platoon had gone out in this way the night before, but a few of us stayed behind to see what would happen. Two of our men then threw their equipment off and jumped on the parapet with their hands above their heads. Two of the Germans done the same and commenced to walk up the river bank, our two men going to meet them. They met and shook hands and then we all got out of the trench.

Buffalo Bill [the Company Commander] rushed into the trench and endeavoured to prevent it, but he was too late: the whole of the Company were now out, and so were the Germans. He had to accept the situation, so soon he and the other company officers climbed out too. We and the Germans met in the middle of no-man’s-land. Their officers were also now out. Our officers exchanged greetings with them. One of the German officers said that he wished he had a camera to take a snapshot, but they were not allowed to carry cameras. Neither were our officers”

As a History Major and a Non Traditional Student, I never seem to stop researching.   My new focus on becoming a Public Historian directly relates to this posting.   Sharing history with the everyday viewer is what public history is all about.  I vow to be more diligent in my postings this coming year with updates on my Non Traditional Student journey.  I will finally reach a lifelong goal this Spring as I finally achieve the college degree that has evaded me all these 35+ years of working life.    I wish everyone peace and a happy holiday season.

This has been one of those weeks.   Some successes and some challenges.   My research paper for English Lit was a big hit with my instructor.   MTH 065 is another story though.   I have scrambled all week getting ready to take a Module test for this class.   Keeping up with the homework for the next module we are working on is in the way of studying for the test.   The interference theory of learning is coming into play with this class.   The information being processed for the new module being taught is creeping into my study of the test materials.   Time management this week has also been a big challenge.   I have not been religious about my reading assignments for all 4 of my classes.   Trying to stuff Shakespeare into Botany with a sprinkling of Geology has my head spinning.   Thank heaven for the President’s Day holiday.   No classes to attend.   I should have an opportunity to spend some quality time in the books.   I have learned the hard way that you cannot get behind in the written homework assigned while trying to keep up with reading.   Something usually has to get put aside.   Trying to stay on top of time management as a non traditional student is often very difficult for Non Trads with families.   I do not have any excuses, my family responsibilities have long flown the coop.   I have to contend with a much more insidious time leech…a full to the brim TIVO and the Winter Olympics beginning tomorrow.   Just can’t let it run our lives anymore.   Seems like a wimpy excuse for letting time management slide.   Half the problem is recognizing it I suppose…   I always remember my father’s  axiom:  “Don’t do as I do…Do as I say.”   I’ll be back on track within a couple of days, time management will again become a part of my daily affairs.  We will have to see how the TIVO feels about it as it records hours of Winter Olympics over the next two weeks.    TIVO can be a wicked taskmaster sometimes.

You never know where being a non traditional student is going to take you.   I am taking ENG 202 “Middle Shakespeare” as a baccalaureate core class for my BA in History.   Little did I know these last two terms would be a History Major’s favorite journey into Elizabethan England.   I am investigating more of the history of the streets of London than the real plays we are studying.   Each new play we focus on, opens up a new avenue of historical research that I seem to be diverted into…I know, it’s a guy thing -  Ohhh, shiny object!!! I’ll go this way!!    This Nontraditional student journey is just getting better each term in college.   I can turn any class I’m taking into a historical investigation.    My Biology teacher had Darwin’s Origin of the Species book in class for a lecture yesterday.   I found myself pouring over the references in the index finding historical tidbits about all kinds of things.   Made a bunch of notes and now I find myself digging around in all kinds of new side-tracks.    But, I digress,  did the Bard have a STD?   I think he may have gotten chlamydia from the dark lady.   There is some good circumstantial evidence in the Sonnets as well as Shakespeare’s other plays.    Of course, I decided to write a research paper on this topic!!    Who says Non Traditional Students are boring!!   Today, I received my paper back with a resounding A+ grade.    (Actually I’m on a run of all A+ on papers for this instructor!!)   I am reprinting it for your approval here in this blog posting.   Note that the format has changed to make it work on a WordPress blog.   I hope you enjoy the paper. (continue reading…)

Happy Non Traditional Student Week!!    This week, November 2-7 is National Non Traditional Student Week!!   Yippeee!!   I found this information online, not at my campus.   While I am still taking my Math courses at a community college, I do have ties to Oregon State starting next term.   OSU has a Non Traditional Student Taskforce which I am going to support.   To my knowledge, there is no “planned” activities for Non Trad Week.   This is probably because Non Trad students are the busiest students on any campus.   This special week falls during some schools mid term exams…good timing.   I will pass the word around my fellow non trads, maybe we can celebrate over a cup of coffee.  I will put this week in my calendar for next year and make darn sure there is the proper recognition publicly.   I spent the last weekend working on a paper for ENG 201, so I was not planning any special events for this week.   I’ll do better next year!    If your campus Non Traditional Student group has any activities for this special week, be sure and post a comment about them so we can get the word out.   I have read some articles in a couple of East Coast college newspapers that are online, but so far nothing from this side of the nation.