Wings of Youth (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9798902700005)

A series of stories take you on a journey of peaks and valleys. Some are serious, sad, and sincere. Others hilarious yet thoughtful. Most are relatable to anyone who has known grief or the satisfaction of accomplishment.

Doors open and close when there is loss and pain is felt, but is then followed by fresh opportunities that give meaning and purpose to that loss. There is grief, the joy of flying, and transitions through career changes and the fulfillment and satisfaction of touching young lives by teaching and you will be touched by the memories of six decades. Each story could, and once did, stand on its own, but they are stitched together by a "muse;" The author's wife.

First, the loss of a father leads to a twenty-year love affair with flying, then a brush with near blindness that jeopardized that love affair, then the end of a marriage. One career ends, and through a series of doors opening and closing, there is teaching, where the author is finally in his element. Then on a journey to the Philippines, you see and hear life in Manila, and a new love launches another marriage.

As this fledgling marriage blooms, they talk and walk and stories are told: childhood experiences in school, an exploration of neighborhood life in the 1950's, surrogate grandparents next door, a friendship with a black co-worker, an encounter with a 1930's movie and radio star, and the anatomy of a marriage destined to die on the vine. There are humorous interludes about cysts, walks in a park that produce delicious fantasies, and thoughts on the meanness of women and cruelty of men. There are stories about puppies and boats. There is something for anyone who has ever lived or expects to. All are true. Most are tweaked.