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.

My winter term at Oregon State University is almost over, and I realized that my last posting was during Christmas Break…  Again, I vow to do better at keeping everyone up to date about my Nontraditional Student Journey.   A couple of weeks ago, the OSU History Students Association, of which I am a proud member, hosted a career fair on campus.   This event was specifically designed for History Majors.   The club sought members of the professional community to come to a forum and tell their stories of how a History Major can be successful in the “real world”.    We also promoted the graduate programs of various institutions in our area.   My History of 20th Century Europe professor,  Dr. Kara Ritzheimer, is the faculty advisor to our organization, so she offered her class extra credit points for attending the conference.  My paper turned into a soul-searching, goal oriented assessment of my Nontraditional Student, History Major journey.   Now that I have turned in this assignment, I can post it here on Reaching Lifelong Goals.com.   I hope that folks will find my ruminations entertaining at best, possibly even inspirational to fellow Non Trads.  This term at Oregon State has been a turning point.   My Archival Sciences class (HST 499)  has opened up new avenues to me as a History Major.   Maybe I now know what I want to be when I grow up!

The 2011 History Student Association Career Fair was a resounding success.   The broad range of History Major related topics on hand was interesting and informative.   This year’s career fair was especially useful to me as I will begin my final year in my 35-year-old quest for a college degree fall term 2011.   I have done quite a bit of refining of my goals as a History Major over the past few months.   My interest in Public History and Archival Sciences has given me some direction in my goals and aspirations.   Although it has taken 50+ years for me to decide what I want to be when I grow up, my path has become clear this term.  My enrollment in HST 499, Archival Studies has really been an eye-opening experience.   I have become to appreciate the “rush of History” in actually handling important primary source documents and artifacts.   I savor the hair standing up on the back of my neck and that lump in my throat as I put on the white cotton gloves before beginning to paw through an archival collection.   This field of history is definitely one I want to pursue.  My first interview was really a reconnection and chat with Scott Daniels, Research Librarian of the Oregon Historical Society.   I met Scott last term while doing research for Professor Mutschler’s HST 310 course.   We discussed the passing of the bond measure in Portland for the Historical Society.   They will now be expanding their hours in the Research Library to 32 hours per week.  The funding for the OHS will begin later this summer.   The OHS bond measure was passed this past election. A good omen for a history majors, I trust?   I also discussed my new Thesis topic for my Senior Project with Scott.   The OHS has a couple of Archival collections that will aid my research.   A student membership in the OHS will be a real deal as I will be spending some major time there and a $25.00 fee will save over the long haul.  One thing that I have learned from both HST 310 and HST 499 is benefits of cultivating a relationship with your Research Librarian! My goals as a History Major have been leaning towards the area of Public History.   I feel that this specialty will become more marketable in the current “Historian” job market.   Dr. Ben Mutschler was at the career fair representing the History Department’s Public History Program.  Although this program has not been approved for a Graduate Degree presently, I do have my hopes that I might be one of its first Master’s candidates.   Ben and I discussed the problems of getting approvals and setting up curriculums for a new graduate program.   He also suggested that I might “testify” or present my opinions of a Public History Degree to the über powers during the next academic year.   I also plan to put together a presentation on the need of another Graduate Program other than our history of science department.   I may not be successful, possibly tilting at windmills, but it may have some positive impact.  I do feel strongly that this will be the direction in my graduate studies, so I’m game for the challenge.  My wife has researched the Masters of History programs at both Western Oregon and Portland State.   Although my loyalties lie with Oregon State, I am of the opinion that too many compromises would be involved to develop a science based thesis in my historical specialties.  The PSU program is specifically a degree in Public History and may be a better fit for my passions.   Their program involves practical experience in Museum Technologies and Archival Studies.   I also would be able to work on a master’s thesis more in-line with my interests.   My love of “everything WWI” can be cultivated with a continuation of my senior project about the US Army Spruce Production Division in the Northwest (a public history topic) during WWI.

I also want to further my skills in Archival Studies.   Actually touching history has overshadowed my original thoughts of becoming a Teacher.  I discussed this goal with Larry Landis of the OSU Archives.   The path that he took was with a Master’s in History, and has made archival sciences his career.   With a degree in Public History and an official certification in archival sciences, I would have a better chance of a position in a Museum or Historical Society Archive.   Tia Edmunson-Morton of the OSU Archives gave me some valuable advice about programs through USC and Emporia State University.   I would be able to get a certification through them in an online/distance program concurrently with my graduate studies.   This was a real boost to my goal setting process.   My wife will be pleased.  Granted, these conversations should have occurred 35 years ago, before life got in my way.   I have often wondered recently where I would be now if I had made these goals as a High School student.   I fantasize about being a researcher for the Smithsonian or the curator of the Evergreen Museum.   A person’s dreams should be an important component of their goals, so I allow myself these little indulgences.    The History Student Association Career Fair was both an eye opener and a personal goal setting lesson for me this year.   I enjoyed being a part of the planning and implementation in my small way for the H.S.A.   I do believe in “reaching lifelong goals” as a personal motto over these past couple of years in college, and I am thankful for the boost in enthusiasm from the Career Fair.

I was not able to fit this experience into one blog posting.   Today I would like to share my post 1920 aircraft loves.   Perhaps the most exciting aspect of my air museum experiences this vacation was to see both B-29 aircraft that ended WWII.   The USAF Museum houses the Nagasaki bomber “Bockscar” and I was able to see the Enola Gay at this museum.   Both of these aircraft are important pieces of aviation and military history. Putting all of the horrible devastation caused by these airplanes aside,  I looked at them for their overall historical value.   Singular in their place in history, seeing both of these aircraft was special to me.   I spent the time to contemplate the ramifications on world history, post 1945 that seem to hang in the air around these two planes and was deeply moved.   Thinking in terms of the historical significance surrounding the sights and experiences of this vacation keeps my History Major mind spinning.   Of course, the other aircraft on display were just waiting for me to absorb them as well.   Udvar Hazy has some unique aircraft from WWII and one of my favorites is the Dornier Do-335 A-0 “Pfiel”.    Two powerful engines with a propeller on each end of the plane!    Captured at the end of WWII this aircraft was sent back to the USA for testing.   It was sent back to Germany for restoration at the Dornier factory.   Men who worked on the plane when it was built helped with the restoration.   They were amazed to find the explosive bolt charges for dropping the bottom rudder were still in place and active 30 years later!    I enjoyed the display of German experimental aircraft and of note was the remains of the Horten Ho III h flying wing glider.   The artifact is being conserved rather than restored due to the fact that there are no drawings or other information to complete a restoration.   It does not look like much, but it is another rare piece of aviation history and I was excited to see it.   The airplane/spacecraft  geek in me got all weepy in viewing some of the most mundane artifacts of the space race of the 1960s.   I was glued to the TV for every launch and recovery of the Gemini and Apollo programs (I was just a little too young for Mercury) so seeing this gallery was really special.   There were artifacts such as camera lenses used to photograph the moon’s surface on Apollo 11 and being a photographer, well, I should have brought a bib for my drooling…   The photo of the Apollo capsule (right) may not look that remarkable, but being the geek I am, I was all choked up  to see an actual artifact from the Apollo 11 Moonshot,  the flotation ring used in the recovery after splashdown.   I know, it is a rubber ring and some beach balls attached to a mock-up capsule, but my memories of the end of the first moon landing mission got the better of me.    I am the ultimate history geek.   I own this, and apologize not one bit for my fervor overflowing.   The Mercury program was represented by Astronaut Allen Shepard’s Freedom 7II capsule.   This is the only orbit configured Mercury Capsule left.   Shepard was to fly this spacecraft in a long duration orbital mission in late 1963.   Due to the success of Gordon Cooper’s flight, the mission was cancelled so NASA could move on to the Gemini program. It is displayed just as it would have been in orbit with the retro package still attached.    This was really special to behold.   The Udvar Hazy facility will be getting one of the decommissioned shuttles soon, replacing the Enterprise  on display now.   The Evergreen Air Museum in McMinnville Oregon (where I hope to intern this summer) will possibly get this spacecraft, or quite possibly the remaining shuttle that has flown in space that will be coming to the west coast.  The artifacts and significant space program memorabilia on display were a real treat for me.   The Udvar Hazy Center is huge and has the capacity to house the Shuttle and the Concorde.    But it was the special items in the collection that drew me near.   The WWII Japanese Kamikaze Ohka (cherry blossom) type 22 is unique as it was jet powered.   This suicide weapon was to be carried under the wing of a “Betty” bomber and launched at the US Navy warships.   This is the only remaining thermojet powered Bakka Bomb.   Japanese WWII aircraft are rare and the NASM has the only remaining examples of some of these on display.   Another interesting WWII Japanese plane was the Aichi M6A1 Seiran (Clear Sky Storm) float plane.  These aircraft were  designed to attack the Panama Canal.   They were to be carried on special submarines  and launched when in range of the strategic target.   This is the only remaining Seiran and is brilliantly restored. This museum was the final stop on my History Major’s Dream Vacation. I was very sad for it to end, but after 12 days of Planes, Trains and Museums I was  ready to get home and sleep in my own bed.   I plan to wrap up my reflections on this experience in my final posting for this series.   It was a lot to process, both mentally and photographically and two months later I still am deeply effected by this trip.   Vacations are meant to be relaxing, this one turned out to be so much more.

Alright, up til now, this History Major’s Dream Vacation has kind of been all about ME.   Airplanes, Trains, Ships, History Museums, I will take full responsibility for that content.   Well, on our last day in Oley, Pennsylvania while visiting  Patty’s sister and her family, we spent a day that was all about Patty.   The sweetest place on earth, Hershey Pennsylvania!   Chocolate World!  This attraction is about an hour from Oley and we took our nephew, Rafe and headed out for a chocolate adventure.   Jennifer and her husband Brian were entered in a triathlon in Reading and had left early in the morning.   This day was the only rainy one we encountered on our trip, a leftover storm coming up from Texas.    Not letting weather stand in our way, we decided to enjoy our day.   The Hershey Chocolate World venue is really something to experience.   A very high-tech amusement park is also part of the park.   Weather prohibited going on the rides, but there still is plenty to do at Chocolate World.   I would have to say that this place is major sensory overload.   An informative ride about the manufacturing of chocolate was our first stop.   Lots of animated displays about Hershey’s story, along with singing dairy cows, was really quite fun.   We then took the tour bus all around the Hershey area and learned about the huge chocolate factory, the Milton Hershey School and other sights around the area.   A very informative tour with lots of historical goodies for me to enjoy as well.   After the town tour we came up with a plan of action for the extra special activities at Chocolate World.   One thing I noticed was that all of the amusements at Chocolate World were very high tech and they all seemed to dump you out in the gift shop areas.   The “Really Big 3D Show” was a hoot, with a “host” lecturer and a slick “promoter” as hosts.   With images coming at you, smells of chocolate and mists of “rain” in the auditorium, this was a fantastic experience for us all.   Our nephew, Rafe got a big kick out of this show and wanted to see it again.    We also signed up for a “chocolate tasting” class which was again, very entertaining and informative.   Wish we could have tasted some other styles of chocolate,  but the main types (all Hershey products, of course) were represented.   The tasting room was decorated with some wonderfully colorful murals about chocolate.   I learned  about chocolate and how cocoa beans are processed as well as the different “notes” of flavor that differentiate dark from milk chocolate.    All chocolate is good, but Patty’s favorite is dark chocolate.    We were all on a sugar high and had a great time.    The Hershey Chocolate World is an experience that everyone should have.   The events all cost a pretty penny for admission, individually…   That being said, the shear joy of experiencing this through the eyes of Rafe was, as they say, priceless. This day on our vacation was supposed to be all about Patty, but I had a great time as well.   The gift shop trip was Patty’s chance to bring home a T-shirt to wear, proclaiming her visit to the Sweetest Place on Earth.    My wife was being a saint in trying to make sure that I fulfilled lifelong goals on this trip, and I was overjoyed that she was having so much fun on this day with Rafe.    The photo below was about mid day at Chocolate World, crowds of happy children and haggard adults filling the main hall.

We made it home to Oley by dinner time and spent a wonderful evening of family time with Jennifer and Brian.   We played games, discussed Shakespearean History (Jennifer has her Ph.D in that discipline) and overall had a wonderful visit.   Too short, however, as we had to leave on Monday morning to get back to Maryland for our flight out on Tuesday.    The main event for the trip on Monday….the National Air and Space Museum, Udvar Hazy facility in VA.

Tomorrow’s posting will be back to History Major stuff again, another Bucket List item checked off in a spectacular way!!

Breaking news!!  Non-traditional students find success at OSU!   My daily Oregon State University newspaper, The Daily Barometer published a wonderful article about Non Trads.  I was surprised to find my photo (at left) on the front page, above the fold on this morning’s edition.   The author of the article, Kayley Hanecek, spent about an hour and a half interviewing me about life as an older student in today’s collegiate life.   Her research into the Non-traditional Students at Oregon State was quite complete.   There are 4,615 Non Trads at OSU out of a student population of around 22,000.   The rate of increase over the past couple of years is over 8%, which is most likely due to the downturn of our Nation’s economy.   She goes on to highlight the ASOSU  Non-Traditional Student Task Force and the work they are doing on behalf of the older population at our university.   The article tells my story of being out of school for 35 years and finally coming back to earn my long desired college degree.   I am proud to represent my fellow older students.   My story is probably a little more unique than the majority of Non-traditional Students, my gap in school attendance is not the norm for the demographic.  Many of us are dealing with issues of balancing family life, work and everyday life with the goals of our studies.   The older student is a minority in education today, but a growing section of the population in higher education.   Non trads make up around 20% of the student body at Oregon State University.   Which makes the Non Trads in colleges today one of the fastest growing “minorities” .  In the Nation’s community colleges this percentage is probably higher as the older population is in a retraining mode.   The article also listed that I have been maintaining this Reaching Lifelong Goals.com blog and that I am a volunteer at the Albany Civil Theater.   (actually, it is a CIVIC theater, but we are quite “civil” to each other…)    Kayley tells my story of Non Traditional Student life in a detailed and entertaining way.  It is difficult to condense a lifetime of being a working stiff in the real world, but the author tells it like it was!   The final line of the article is my quote, “I’m unique, I’m just a geek having fun”     I do declare that  indeed, I am a History Geek and my college experience is proving to be a great deal of fun.    I am finally having the experience and fun of being a crazy college student, I’m just a little too old to pull all-nighters anymore!

The title of the article says it all “Non-traditional students find success at OSU” Open this link and have a good read!