Hug Your History Teacher by Chris LaBounty

So, I manage the blogs.

Interestingly, the best way to manage the blogs I found, is to do it by NOT managing the bloggers. Might take a second for that to make sense.

But we have an agreement. I don’t tell them what to write – they don’t commit libel.

That said, I sat here all day wondering – “is someone going to write a blog post about September 11th today?” Then I realized they probably won’t.

I don’t think the reason they won’t is because they might think it’s outside of the scope of an admissions website. Although that could be it. I don’t think they won’t because they think there is anything controversial about the subject. They don’t avoid controversy, we just had a blogger deftly navigate an analysis of the Penn State scandal.

No, I think maybe they won’t is because on September 11th, 2001 – most of the bloggers were 7. Or 8. Maybe 10 max.

Wow.

Well, I’m old enough to remember.

I’m old enough to remember sprinting home in fear, even in San Francisco, because some news suggested that the Transamerica tower where I was was a target. I’m old enough to remember the feeling of guilt I felt when I said to my girlfriend, “I’m so impressed that the tower is still standing with that huge gaping hole in it.” And then seconds later watching it fall as if my words made it happen.

And I’m certainly old enough to remember when I took that call from Alex, announcing that my boy Paul Sloan was a victim.

RIP Paul, I dropped by the memorial and took this picture.

So, as a licensed history teacher in the state of Massachusetts it occured to me. While we’re all focusing on Math and Science, maybe we should all hug our history teachers today. Because this lesson and many more that they teach us every year, allow us too to not forget. And that’s education.