Monday, February 10, 2014

My List, Spoiler Alert

As I promised, here is my list of the five people I would invite to dinner, a glass of wine and good conversation:

Ray Pitman.  A WWII vet, traveled the islands of the Pacific landing on beaches in the second waves.  Lots of stories.  Invented several INDUSTRIES, not just machines, including the “cherry picker” industry, digger derricks, trenchers, wood chippers and a few more.  Truly a remarkable raconteur with stories of dining with “kings.”

Queen Elizabeth I.  During her reign, the world was permanently altered.  Great things happened with regularity.  Shakespeare, Drake, the Spanish Armada.  The New World.  The Virgin Queen.

Will Rogers.  A man of uncommon wit and wisdom.

My Great Grandmother at Age 75.  The reason for the age—she lived to be 109.  I was 13 when she died, I knew her well and she was 16 when Lincoln was assassinated.  She was a widow for over 70 years, and at age 75, she had seen a lot—the year would be 1924.

Genghis Khan.  Established the greatest empire the world has ever known, stretching from Poland to Viet Nam, from the borders of Egypt to Korea.  How did he come up with concepts like freedom of religion, the postal system, diplomatic immunity, and free commerce?

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Here is another list, from daughter Amy:

Jesus - because I think he would be an optimistic and peaceful person to meet - and he has changed the world more than anyone else in history.

Queen Elizabeth I - because she inspired my fascination with queens - powerful women.

Benjamin Franklin - his ideas probably align with mine and he was so instrumental to the foundation of our government.  And, he would probably be pretty fascinating to talk to - always curious and knowledgeable about a lot of things.

Abigail Adams - a "behind the scenes" woman.  She was married to a powerful man and probably inspired him as well.  If she had lived today, we probably would have known more about her contributions.

Mary Magdalene -
I believe she had a lot more to do with Jesus' ministry than we are led to believe in the Bible.  I would want to know the truth.  She is another "behind the scenes" woman who we don't know much about because of the role of women at the time.  And, she would keep Jesus company at the dinner party:-)


Amy Barnhill, Ph.D.
University of Houston-Victoria
Associate Professor, Literacy Studies
Coordinator of Teacher Education Program

Not surprising that both of us mentioned QEI, that has long been a shared interest. Anybody else??

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