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A question that wasn’t asked, and my answer (specify Q. and A.):
# Response Date Comment
1. Sat, 4/14/07 8:56 PM If you could change one thing in your life, what would it be? I wish I had not been divorced. Even though I now have a wonderful and loving husband, the trauma of the divorce was simply horrible.
2. Mon, 4/16/07 3:31 PM What has changed you outlook of life the most? A heart attack.
3. Mon, 4/16/07 7:29 PM Q: Do you think that NMH did the right thing in discontinuing use of the Northfield campus? A: I think they should have tried the previously successful model: two schools (could be co-ed, needn't be gender-segregated) with close ties where it makes sense (e.g. financing) and none where it doesn't (e.g. students would have all their classes and activities on the campus where they live, not 5 miles away). Get rid of the costs and inefficiencies of having people running back and forth, trying to live in two places at once. Over time, the two schools would have developed different personalities; that's fine.
4. Tue, 4/17/07 12:36 AM Has your commitment to NMH grown over the years? As I get older, NMH means more to me every year.
5. Tue, 4/17/07 12:39 AM Q) Do you feel that your life has been "successful?" A) Yes, though not everyone would agree if judging it in conventional terms. I am not financially secure, but I like myself, and consider who I am to be a result of everything I've done.
6. Tue, 4/17/07 1:10 AM Why am I NOT attending reunion? I was originally planning to - but I've had too many emails and postal mails only concerned with money, contributions, annual gifts, etc. It's a challange for me to just meet the minimum cost. I'm not coming to compete with classmates and other classes as to who can do more. This rots.
7. Tue, 4/17/07 2:55 AM Q. What do you think it all means? A. The universe is still designing intelligence (and please note in #1, I attended only MHS0
8. Tue, 4/17/07 4:03 PM Q: You were graduated from a Dwight L. Moody-founded school purporting to teach and exemplify Christian values. How much of an impact or influence did NMH have on you in this regard? A: Apart from some supreme sacred concert moments, I would have to say that my religious experience was a dead experience; chapel messages and Bible classes generally were lifeless, a joke, lacking what I now know as "God-inspired" or "annointed" spiritual teaching. I didn't truly understand what it meant to be "saved" until 16 years later, following a personal crisis. This begs another question, which only the school can answser: Is NMH so afraid/ashamed of the Gospel that it is not evidenced or proclaimed more openly in general, and more specificazlly, in the curriculum? I think students pay a heavy price for the administration's focus on being "politically correct" in a nation where Christian views and values are increasingly debased and denigrated.
9. Tue, 4/17/07 6:13 PM Today's happiness? I am vitally happy because of a loving, caring husband and family and never having lost sight of the Grace of our God.
10. Tue, 4/17/07 10:47 PM Q. What did you get out of your years at NMH? A. Confidence, self-respect, a sense of purpose, discipline, the value of friendship, the necessity and beauty of "getting your hands dirty" with hard physical work and sports, appreciation for music, and most importantly, the reverence for the spiritual side of life. In today's world, you don't often find a place that will give all of this to a struggling young man. Mt. Hermon did for me!
11. Wed, 4/18/07 11:13 AM greatest present challenge? dealing with four months of compromised vision, dizziness, double vision following cataract surgery - not over yet, but will be soon,hopefully.
12. Wed, 4/18/07 5:44 PM How do you feel about the cammpus closing? Not happy with the process and feel the Nortthfield gretaer community should have been kept better informed....
13. Thu, 4/19/07 12:26 AM Q.?? Can't think of any, just now. I still do my taxes without any help fom computers.
14. Fri, 4/20/07 3:01 PM should have asked if we have pets. PS I don't have any
15. Sat, 4/21/07 2:55 AM Q: How often have you returned to campus? A; Unfortunately, not very often :-( (Living 2,000 miles makes it difficult)
16. Sun, 4/22/07 7:44 PM How do I feel about life? Great! It's exciting and there's always something new. I am excited about contributing to research on the environment in tracking through scuba diving! Oh, and by the way, I have found it fascinating in my sixties to have seen the many and sometimes not so nice (really ugly) strands of my life come together in a tapestry which I am able to use in mentoring my adult college and graduate students in creative ways.
17. Sat, 4/28/07 3:23 PM What are your biggest fears about getting older? Memory loss and restricted mobility.
18. Thu, 5/3/07 6:39 PM Q: would I choose Northfield again? A. You bet! And send my 4 grandchildren there, too.
19. Fri, 5/4/07 7:30 PM Q. Do you have financial worries today or for the future? A. No.
20. Fri, 5/4/07 11:26 PM Where do you live: medium sized city in Midwest If you could change your life, what might you change? Wish I could find a low humidity, medium sized community, on a swimable lake and perhaps near the mountains, with a moderate temperature... and clean air and water.
21. Sun, 5/6/07 11:23 AM How many times did you declare bankruptcy? Twice. Are you a millionaire? Yes. but it's illiquid right now.
22. Sun, 5/6/07 12:02 PM Q1 What are your most important goals for the next five years? A1 Complete two books. Q2 Since we cannot change the past, so not what would you change if you could relive your life, but rather, what major lessons have you learned from your life? A1 The risks of substance abuse (alcohol, in my case) and its genetic origins.
23. Sun, 5/6/07 12:39 PM None
24. Sun, 5/6/07 2:33 PM Opinion of NMH today? Mine is very low. I believe that it has drifted VERY far away from D. L. Moody's philosophy. It looks to me like a colony of Holland in the USA.
25. Sun, 5/6/07 2:53 PM Can't think of any
26. Sun, 5/6/07 3:10 PM Have you reconnected with anyone in your family or friends that you've lost contact? Yes, a cousin I haven't seen in 45 years. It was great and plan to continue relationship.
27. Sun, 5/6/07 3:11 PM Why are we losing religion in New England? The rebellious 1960s shed most respect for authority .... for government, the militry, and for church ..... but our country (in the majority) still has silent feeling for God, if not religeous principles
28. Sun, 5/6/07 3:39 PM Will you attend the 75th reunion? I will!!!!
29. Sun, 5/6/07 5:23 PM Not long retired, so still feeling my way into this new life. A younger former colleague tells me she sees retirement as a privilege. Given the challenges, I can only hope to be enjoying this privilege five years down the road at least as much as I am now. Guess this is the old question of "How do you/would you like to see yourself five years from now?
30. Sun, 5/6/07 11:12 PM In your mind where do you spend the most time? often too much in the past or in neutral.
31. Sun, 5/6/07 11:15 PM Q. What was the greatest drawback about Mount Hermon when you attended? A. It wasn't co-ed until years after I graduated!
32. Mon, 5/7/07 1:22 AM what do you wish you'd done differently: Sent all of my kids to private high school-i.e. Northfield/Mt Hermon.
33. Mon, 5/7/07 2:24 AM Q. Is your view of the future optimistic or pessimistic and why? A.Both. I believe the current administration has set our country back but Americans are resilient. Global climate change is worrisome. What will the future hold? The American empire will end, but in my life time? My sons are pessimistic. The quality of public leadership does matter.
34. Mon, 5/7/07 2:32 AM What is something you haven't done yet, but would like to accomplish? My fantasy vacation - a sailboat trip around the Mediterranean & Aegean - not a cruise, but a real sailing vessel.
35. Mon, 5/7/07 6:34 PM Are you glad (grateful) you attended Northfield? Yes.
36. Mon, 5/7/07 11:14 PM How have I made a difference in the world? Guiding people in our beautiful outdoors and opening up their eyes to the wonder of our universe. Teaching them about birds, wildflowers and geoloby.
37. Mon, 5/7/07 11:14 PM Does your life have any real meaning? Only to me.
38. Tue, 5/8/07 1:40 AM What alarms you most? Religion, and all the harm and distraction that eminates therefrom.
39. Tue, 5/8/07 3:32 AM What is the single most important thing we can learn to do to improve the quality of life in the U.S. (aside from buying a hybrid car to reduce carbon emission)? Learn how to have a real discussion with people who are different from ourselves or who hold a different viewpoint! The conflict resolution skills that are being taught now in elementary schools to resolve the problems of bullying on playgrounds need to be taken one step further by adults so that each person learns that everyone else on earth has a right to state his or her perspectives and to be heard before any judgment is made about that person or idea. We have to replace the psychology of dominance with the psychology of comparable value.
40. Tue, 5/8/07 2:27 PM Did attendance at Northfield enrich my life? Answer- Yes- great content and -no -difficult psychological experience making college more difficult.
41. Wed, 5/9/07 1:03 AM Q. Why am I bothering with this questionnaire? A. I'm not sure, except that I'm more or less of an obedient person.
42. Wed, 5/9/07 6:31 PM What am I doing, personally, to make the world a better place? Trying to pass on what I have learned to others via writing and teaching, trying to walk lightly on the land, donating time and resources to help others, including the non-human inhabitants of the planet that can't speak for themselves.
43. Thu, 5/10/07 9:21 PM Q.Of all that you learned at Northfield what made the biggest impact on your life ? A.My devotion to God and social service.That we needed to use our head, hands, and heart to make our world a better place for everyone.
44. Fri, 5/11/07 4:30 PM Has Northfield made a difference in how you address life's issues? Yes, Northfield taught me critical thinking and problem solving skills and gave me a sense that what's important in life is to make a difference in a positive way in all of your life's endeavors.
45. Mon, 5/14/07 1:28 AM Q. Do I occasionally dream that I'm late for an exam in Beveridge Hall. A. Once in a while.
46. Mon, 5/14/07 9:30 PM How are you managing sexually? As someone surgically impotent, I am glad I learned to satisfy my wife manually even before the operation.
47. Tue, 5/15/07 10:34 PM I hope I don't embarrass him, but one of the sweetest, most tender kisses I remember was after a dance at Mt Herman with David Ewing. Thank you David!
48. Wed, 5/23/07 7:18 PM What kind of changes are y ou making as you consider winding down. Moving to a smaller and easier home and life style, getting rid of things!
49. Wed, 5/23/07 8:50 PM How about Northfield friends? I have attended/hosted two mini-reunions, and do stay in touch with at least 4 friends.
50. Wed, 5/23/07 9:30 PM What have you left undone? Found a way, again, to contribute more meaningfully to change in our society.
51. Fri, 5/25/07 1:52 AM Q: When do you plan to retire? A: When I can think of something that will be more fun, exciting, and rewarding to do.
52. Fri, 5/25/07 3:49 AM What was the single event that changed the courseof your life and how? My mother's discovery of breast cancer and her realization of my brother's and my need to become more independent, which led to our coming to Mount Herman and Northfield respectively. He went on to become an orthopedic surgeon graduating from Harvard Medical School and I receiving my dgree in Elemntary Education. the friendships we there made were invaluable.
53. Fri, 5/25/07 3:42 PM How tuned in are you to technology such as the internet, computer use, etc.? I consider myself to be far more tuned in to technology use than most of my peers.
54. Wed, 6/20/07 5:49 PM Mr Morrow conducted a section of Bible 2 in which he discussed real moral issues confrounted the members of that class. I wish I had been in that section because the biggest waste of time at Mount Hermon was Bible II with the other masters who taught that course.