{"id":9973,"date":"2021-08-08T17:44:32","date_gmt":"2021-08-08T21:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=9973"},"modified":"2021-09-09T07:39:16","modified_gmt":"2021-09-09T11:39:16","slug":"episode-402-make-room-for-heroes-an-interview-with-john-ricker-educator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=9973","title":{"rendered":"EPISODE 402    MAKE ROOM FOR HEROES: AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN RICKER (EDUCATOR)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<div><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><meta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" class=\"\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">Note..this episode is far too long \u2026SOME DID NOT GET FULL ARTICLE SO I CUT<br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>MANY ILLUSTRATIONS\u2026HOPE IT WORKS &nbsp;NOW<br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">EPISODE 402 &nbsp; &nbsp;MAKE ROOM FOR HEROES: AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN RICKER&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">alan skeoch<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">august 2021<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"26457C41-46F5-4A9C-A6D7-1A989A535881\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_20d6d-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">JOHN RICKER\u2026EDUCATOR\u2026A MAN WITH HEROES IN HIS LIFE<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"B37AD071-B466-4E3D-9954-26C3A2F6350B\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9fd6a-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">AT THE END OF THIS EPISODE TRY AND RECORD THE HEROES IN YOUR LIFE<\/div>\n<p><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">In 1986 I wrote a very juvenile article about John Ricker; &nbsp;Uncovered by pure chance today, August<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">5, 2021\u202635 years later. &nbsp;Who is John Ricker? &nbsp;In a word I would say he is an educator. &nbsp;Much more than<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">that of course\u2026husband, professor, philosopher, administrator, veteran, father, grandfather, author, Order of Canada, friend. &nbsp;But he remains<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">to me a teacher\u2026my teacher. &nbsp; Years ago the CBC wanted to interview me on the place of history in<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">the Ontario curriculum (or some such thing like that). &nbsp;A reporter came to Parkdale Collegiate and was<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">questioned by our vice principal. &nbsp;\u201cWhy would you want to see him, he is only a teacher?\u201d &nbsp;True. &nbsp;I was<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">and always have been \u2018only a teacher\u2019. &nbsp;Rather proud of the fact. &nbsp;Early in my career I may have had<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">ambitions for higher positions in the educational pyramid. &nbsp;Maybe later\u2026maybe if I get bored teaching.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">That never happened. &nbsp;I never wanted to be anything but a teacher. &nbsp;I owe that to John Ricker.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">He made all of us feel teaching was the noblest of professions when he taught teachers at the<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">faculty of eduction way back in 1963. &nbsp;Made us proud and nervous. Would we measure up?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Believe it or not, we still meet monthly at John\u2019s house with a group of friends. &nbsp;I am 82. &nbsp;John is 95.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Very senior ciitizens who gather at our Castlefield Insttute to consider world events and laugh a lot.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Teachers all &#8230;even if one is a judge and another a surgeon.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"68C23FA0-89B2-43F9-BB28-F4ABD9BC4571\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_9101-1.jpg\"><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<p><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">There was no reason for me to find this interview among the dusty files in our cellar. &nbsp;Pure chance.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Rather wonderful though. &nbsp;Not because of what I wrote. &nbsp;Not my words. &nbsp;It is the pencilled comments<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">that John Ricker scribbled all over the manuscript and then went on and on shedding light on the<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">need for all of us to have heroes we admire.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cWhat do think of teachers, John?\u201d &nbsp;What a hopelessly dull question. &nbsp;I wish I had not asked. &nbsp;But<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">John began to scribble furiously. &nbsp; &nbsp;The scribbles deciphered.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cMost teachers are bright\u2026even though some are terribly dull and stupid.\u201d &nbsp;Classic Rickerism.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Seems like a contradiction. &nbsp;But it is John Ricker taking himself seriously but not that seriously.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">There is room for argument. &nbsp;\u201cTeachers are bright enough if they are in an atmosphere that<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">applies the right kid of pressure and tension on them.\u201d &nbsp;Internal pressure it seems for the next<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">comment was a bit surprising. &nbsp;\u201cThe problem is that teachers don\u2019t recognize their own heroes.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">For some reason many teachers are afraid to say they have heroes.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cWe fail to ferret out the time-servers and frauds. &nbsp;But even worse, we don\u2019t make a fuss of<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">our heroes. &nbsp;No room for heroes it seems . &nbsp;But the heroes are there\u2026masters of their craft<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">who continue to grow and change, &nbsp;When talking about teachers many agree that teachers<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">are terrible\u2026except for \u2018so and so\u2019 &nbsp;God, my whole life was changed by old Mr. X. &#8220;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"47337C42-D986-4759-8B69-0D1D32BC749C\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d191-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">JAMIE HEMSTEAD JUST LOVeD OUR SCHOOL\u2026JUST LOVED IT\u2026YOU CAN SEE IT IN HIS FACE.<\/div>\n<p><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">\u201cWhy is it that we don\u2019t have monuments to these heroes? You rob a bank and you get a column<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">in the newspaper, perhaps even your picture. &nbsp;But the teacher who changes the way an&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">individual functions for the rest of his or her life earns no more than an aside in what &nbsp;tends<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">to be a blanket denunciation of &nbsp;teaching and teachers.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cThere are teachers who are incompetent. But I don\u2019t think they are a problem because there<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">are ways to get them out of schools even though they aren\u2019t used often. &nbsp;Many think they should be.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">A more serious problem is what to do about the much larger number of marginally competent<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">teachers who just go through the motions and have a negative impact on students.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">JOHN RICKER\u2019S HEROES<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cI had two outstanding teachers in elementary school\u2026.Miss Warrander and Mr. Henry.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Two in secondary school\u2026.Miss McDermid and Mr. Nation<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Three in university\u2026Frank Underhill, &nbsp;Donald McDougal and Earl Birney.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cBy far, the most outstanding was Miss McDermid at Parkdale Collegiate. &nbsp;What made her<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">outstanding was that she was unquestionably a scholar. &nbsp;There was no possibility that what<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">she taught one year would be the same the next year. &nbsp;She took delight in her subject and<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">was determined that we students would share it . &nbsp;Tough material did not deter her for a moment.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">She knew what she wanted to achieve and pursued her goal \u2014and us \u2014 relentlessly. &nbsp;We&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">struggled and grumbled but loved her classes. &nbsp; I think we recognized that this quietly forceful<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">woman &nbsp;was a vitally exciting person and her dedication to learning had made her this way.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Every lesson revealed her fascination with the creative aspects of life. &nbsp;Though a Scot, I doubt very<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">much that she knew for sure what her salary was. &nbsp;I think she was probably surprised that<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">people paid her to spend her life doing what she loved. &nbsp;It\u2019s when reflecting on the Miss<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">McDermids who have enabled &nbsp;the profession that I resent most of the teacher charlatans<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">who would really rather be doing something else.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">John, could you describe this teacher hero in general terms?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cSure,the first obligation of &nbsp;a teacher is to convince his or her students<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">that the creative aspects of human experience are exciting.\u201d <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">NOTE: &nbsp; Respect is basic. &nbsp;John Ricker did not say this explicitly but the word hero assumes respect .If there is no respect, mutual respect, i.e. student respect for a teacher and the reverse teacher respect<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">for his or her students then education does not occur.&nbsp;<br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"8010EB88-F082-47B4-8D18-8EDA0AA42817\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d09e-1.jpg\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"CC9963BB-C6A6-4A4A-922D-75C303E0807E\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d129-1.jpg\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cTo be so excited by the curriculum that the teacher becomes an exciting person in the school<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">whether teaching the chemistry of the DNA molecule or (Voltaire\u2019s Candide). &nbsp;Money is<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">not that important. &nbsp; Good teachers often do not know what they earn. &nbsp;They are astounded<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">that anyone would pay them to teach.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">John maintains we all have our teacher heroes but for some reason keep them hidden.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>&nbsp;Let\u2019s get them out in the open. &nbsp;<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">JOHN RICKER\u2019S HEROES: &nbsp;BIRNEY, UNDERHILL AND MACDOUGAL<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">WHO IS EARL BIRNEY?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<div class=\"orig_8544347\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(20, 24, 35); color: rgb(20, 24, 35); font-family: Roboto, \"Droid Sans\", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16.5px;\">A spider&#8217;s body<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">limp and hairy<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">appeared at the bottom of my coffee&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">The waiter being Castilian<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">said passionately nothing<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">And why indeed should apologies<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">be made to me&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">It was I who was looking in<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">at the spider<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">It might be years<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">before I slipped and drowned<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">in somebody else&#8217;s cup<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<h1 class=\"title item otitle_8544343 vcard\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 23px; margin: 10px 0px 25px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 55px; font-family: Georgia, Palatino, serif;\"><a class=\"nocolor fn\" href=\"https:\/\/allpoetry.com\/poem\/8544343-Poet-tree-by-Earle-Birney\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(141, 56, 0); text-decoration: none;\">Poet-tree<\/a><\/h1>\n<div class=\"preview open poem_body\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div class=\"tr_8544343\" style=\"font-size: 16.5px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(20, 24, 35); color: rgb(20, 24, 35); font-family: Roboto, \"Droid Sans\", Helvetica, sans-serif;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"orig_8544343\" style=\"font-size: 16.5px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(20, 24, 35); color: rgb(20, 24, 35); font-family: Roboto, \"Droid Sans\", Helvetica, sans-serif;\">i fear that i shall never make<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">a poem slippier than a snake<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">or oozing with as fine a juice<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">as runs in girls or even spruce<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">no i wont make not now nor later<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">pnomes as luverlee as pertaters<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">trees is made by fauns or satyrs<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">but only taters make pertaters<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">&amp; trees is grown by sun from sod<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">&amp; so are the sods who need a god<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">but poettrees lack any clue<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">they just need me &amp; maybe you&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"orig_8544343\" style=\"font-size: 16.5px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(20, 24, 35); color: rgb(20, 24, 35); font-family: Roboto, \"Droid Sans\", Helvetica, sans-serif;\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"orig_8544343\" style=\"font-size: 16.5px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(20, 24, 35); color: rgb(20, 24, 35); font-family: Roboto, \"Droid Sans\", Helvetica, sans-serif;\">\n<h1 class=\"title otitle_8544339 item vcard\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 23px; margin: 10px 0px 25px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 55px; font-family: Georgia, Palatino, serif;\"><a class=\"nocolor fn\" href=\"https:\/\/allpoetry.com\/From-The-Hazel-Bough\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(141, 56, 0); text-decoration: none;\">From The Hazel Bough<\/a><\/h1>\n<div class=\"preview open poem_body\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div class=\"tr_8544339\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"orig_8544339\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">I met a lady<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">on a lazy street<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">hazel eyes<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">and little plush feet&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">her legs swam by<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">like lovely trout<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">eyes were trees<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">where boys leant out&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">hands in the dark and<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">a river side<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">round breasts rising<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">with the finger&#8217;s tide&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">she was plump as a finch<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">and live as a salmon<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">gay as silk and<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">proud as a Brahmin&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">we winked when we met<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">and laughed when we parted<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">never took time<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">to be brokenhearted&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">but no man sees<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">where the trout lie now<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">or what leans out<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">from the hazel bough<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<h1 class=\"otitle_8544341 title item vcard\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 23px; margin: 10px 0px 25px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 55px; font-family: Georgia, Palatino, serif;\"><a class=\"nocolor fn\" href=\"https:\/\/allpoetry.com\/The-Bear-On-The-Delhi-Road\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(141, 56, 0); text-decoration: none;\">The Bear On The Delhi Road<\/a><\/h1>\n<div class=\"preview open poem_body\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div class=\"tr_8544341\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"orig_8544341\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">Unreal tall as a myth<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">by the road the Himalayan bear<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">is beating the brilliant air<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">with his crooked arms<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">About him two men bare<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">spindly as locusts leap&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">One pulls on a ring<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">in the great soft nose His mate<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">flicks flicks with a stick<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">up at the rolling eyes&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">They have not led him here<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">down from the fabulous hills<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">to this bald alien plain<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">and the clamorous world to kill<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">but simply to teach him to dance&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">They are peaceful both these spare<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">men of Kashmir and the bear<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">alive is their living too<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">If far on the Delhi way<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">around him galvanic they dance<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">it is merely to wear wear<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">from his shaggy body the tranced<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">wish forever to stay<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">only an ambling bear<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">four-footed in berries&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">It is no more joyous for them<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">in this hot dust to prance<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">out of reach of the praying claws<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">sharpened to paw for ants<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">in the shadows ofdeodars<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">It is not easy to free<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">myth from reality<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">or rear this fellow up<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">to lurch lurch with them<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">in the tranced dancing of men<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">WHO WAS FRANK UNDERHILL?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image size-post-thumbnail alignleft\" alt=\"Frank Underhill and the Politics of Ideas\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"AD00B82F-7225-4369-86E4-A1F54C17BB8F\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/content-1.jpeg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<div id=\"post-19\" class=\"hentry post post-19 category-uncategorized tag-boat elst-blog-post type-post status-publish format-standard tag-lake\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/libquotes.com\/frank-underhill\/quote\/lbg7g7f\" class=\"quote_link\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); caret-color: rgb(85, 85, 85); font-family: Lato, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; text-decoration: none !important;\"><span class=\"quote_span\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.8;\">A nation is a body of people who have done great things together in the past and hope to do great things together in the future.<\/span><\/a><br style=\"box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(85, 85, 85); color: rgb(85, 85, 85); font-family: Lato, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;\" class=\"\"><br style=\"box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(85, 85, 85); color: rgb(85, 85, 85); font-family: Lato, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;\" class=\"\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(85, 85, 85); color: rgb(85, 85, 85); font-family: Lato, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;\" class=\"\"><span class=\"fda\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(159, 163, 165);\">Frank Underhill<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">Frank Underhill (1889-1971) practically invented the role of public intellectual in English Canada through his journalism, essays, teaching, and political activity. He became one of the country&#8217;s most controversial figures in the middle of the twentieth century by confronting the central political issues of his time and by actively working to reform the Canadian political landscape. His propagation of socialist ideas during the Great Depression and his criticism of the British Empire and British foreign policy almost cost him his job at the University of Toronto. In Frank Underhill and the Politics of Ideas, Kenneth Dewar demonstrates how Underhill&#8217;s thought evolved from his days as a student at Toronto and Oxford, to his drafting of the Regina Manifesto &#8211; the founding platform of the leftist Co-operative Commonwealth Federation &#8211; to his support of his long-time friend Lester Pearson\u2019s Liberals in the 1960s. Not willing to be bound by partisan loyalties, his later shift toward the political centre dismayed many of his former allies. The various issues Underhill confronted, Dewar argues, were connected by the pioneering role he played as an intellectual and by his social democratic vision of politics. Dewar also reassesses Underhill\u2019s historical work, focusing on how it differed from the new professional history practised by his younger colleagues. Intelligently written and thoroughly researched, Frank Underhill and the Politics of Ideas delivers important insights into twentieth-century political life and innumerable lessons for twenty-first century Canada.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">JUST MY THOUGHTS\u2026BASED ON VERY LITTLE RESEARCH<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">For some Bizarre reason the word \u2018socialism\u2019 angers many Americans. &nbsp;Perhaps because they associate socialists too closely with Stalinism<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">and the excesses of Soviet communism. &nbsp; Half a century ago Isaac Deutscher said that political change can only come from the turbulence of<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">free thought in the United States. &nbsp;I remember that. &nbsp;Even if it seem unlikely today.<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">To listen to Trumpists the word socialism is akin to the ideas that are found in the &nbsp;depths of evil. &nbsp;Underfhill was a socialist<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">who became a Liberal. &nbsp;For that he paid a price. &nbsp;Seems to me that John Ricker took the same<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">path only did not have to pay the price of alienation. &nbsp;John Ricker gets a thrill out of the freedom<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">of thought\u2026does so with humour and joy\u2026fears not the turmoil of ideas. &nbsp;Revels in them as Underhilll<\/div>\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px;\">must have done.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"post-19\" class=\"hentry post post-19 category-uncategorized tag-boat elst-blog-post type-post status-publish format-standard tag-lake\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div class=\"elst-news-info\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; padding-top: 31px; caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35); color: rgb(35, 35, 35); font-family: Sen, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;\">\n<div class=\"elst-news-meta\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div class=\"row\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; margin-right: -15px; margin-left: -15px;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-12\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; width: 837.796875px; padding-right: 15px; padding-left: 15px; flex: 0 0 100%; max-width: 100%;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\" class=\"\"><font color=\"#656565\" face=\"Lato, sans-serif\" class=\"\"><span style=\"caret-color: rgb(101, 101, 101); font-size: 17px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\" class=\"\">WHY DO SOME PEOPLE CONSIDER SOCIALISM FRIGHTENING? &nbsp;<\/span><\/font><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 16.5px;\" class=\"\"><span style=\"caret-color: rgb(101, 101, 101); color: rgb(101, 101, 101); font-family: Lato, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\" class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 16.5px;\" class=\"\"><span style=\"caret-color: rgb(101, 101, 101); color: rgb(101, 101, 101); font-family: Lato, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\" class=\"\">Socialists choose cooperation to competition, and favour collectivism over individualism. The defining, value of socialism is equality, socialism sometimes being portrayed as a form of egalitarianism. Socialists consider that a measure of social equality is the essential assurance of social stability and cohesion, and that it supports freedom in the sense that it gratifies material needs and helps for personal development. The socialist movement has conventionally articulated the interests of the industrial working class, seen as systematically troubled or structurally disadvantaged within the capitalist system. The objective of socialism is to lessen or abolish class divisions.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">WHO ARE MY HEROES?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cAlan, I thought this Episode was about John Ricker not Alan Skeoch.\u201d &nbsp;:<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">&#8220;Good point Marjorie\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cThen why continue?\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cBecause I would just like to give my heroes a good airing.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cBoring, Alan\u2026drifting into boredom\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cYou might be right we seem to be living in an anti-heroic time where humans that were<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">once leaders have their statues desecrated with paint and their figures decapitated.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cYou know something, Alan, you might have hit on something. We all have heroes&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">but rarely say so.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cThat is the point John Ricker made.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cJust who are your heroes?\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">(If you do not want to read about my heroes then start listing your own herroes&gt;)<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"498D848C-B2B7-48AC-86D9-7084BFF64451\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d29f-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">I am such a shallow person \u2026no great depth of political insight like Ricker. &nbsp;A child of the<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">1950\u2019s. &nbsp;Part of a generation of undeserved wealth earned by the fires of the Great Depression<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">and the sacrifices of so many lives in a war soon to be a footnote.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">I have a lot of heroes.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">In elementary school there were two. &nbsp;Miss Sharpely who loved us &nbsp;and Mr. Hambly who<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">made earth science come alive. &nbsp;He hung a huge wasps nest in his room to which some fired<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">paper clips from elastic bands. &nbsp;But meant no disrespect.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">In secondary school there were more<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Evan Cruickshank<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Roberta Charlesworth<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Maida Schroeder<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Duncan Green<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Fred Burford<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Wally Little<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">In the university of Toronto there were heroes of a different sort<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Marcus Long , philosopher&#8230;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Marjorie Hughes, open arms, open heart\u2026made me a lucky man<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Dr. Norman Paterson, geophysicist who made science exciting&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Voltaire, Steinbeck, Michener, Kant, Rousseau and a host of others not least of<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">which was Eric Fromm\u2019s book &nbsp;The Sane Society. &nbsp;Somewhere in the book<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Fromm argued that everyone should get the same wage. Then people would<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">choose careers they love rather than careers that paid the most money. &nbsp;And we&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">would be a happier people.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">When I said that to my friends they thought I was nuts.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">and later in post grad<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">John Ricker<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Andrew Lockhart<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Desmond Morton<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Phyllis Morgon<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">If I had to choose one high school mega hero, it would be Evan Cruickshank. &nbsp;Although<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">I never noticed it at the time \u201cCrooky\u201d taught me to think for myself<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">with three little words &nbsp;\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d &nbsp;I was not a person that devoted&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">myself to homework. &nbsp;Skipped doing it whenever I could which was<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">often. &nbsp;I meant no disrespect to my teachers. &nbsp;There just was not enough<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">time to do everything\u2026sports, dancing, dating girls, reading for pleasure, earning<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">a little money. &nbsp;So I skipped homework and accepted the odd detention<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">for doing so. &nbsp;One detention was memorable. &nbsp;Roberta Charlesworth<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">kept me after school to serve a detention in her room. &nbsp;Seemed easier<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">to serve it in the girls gym where there were females in bloomers to look<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">at. &nbsp;Roberta Charlesworth was the girls coach. &nbsp;Next day she called me<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">to the front of the class\u2026I always tried to find a middle seat\u2026why did<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">she want me? &nbsp;She promptly lifted me off the ground by my ear. &nbsp;\u201cWhen<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">you serve a detention with me you do it here in this room not in the girls gym.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">I respected her as a teacher\u2026.one of my teacher heroes in spite of my<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">sore ear..<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">But \u201cCrooky\u201d takes &nbsp;the prize with his simple \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">technique. &nbsp;I respected him. &nbsp;Stood in awe of him at times. &nbsp;His explanation<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">of Marxian socialism stays with me to this day. &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">One day however I got up my nerve to ask him about some event<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">in history that intrigued me. &nbsp;Crooky would surely know. &nbsp;Bt he did not.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">He even confessed \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d which sent me scurrying to the library<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">that evening just to help Crooky out. &nbsp; Not to suck around. I did that<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">out of respect. &nbsp; Later I discovered that his \u2018I don\u2019t know\u2019 may have<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">been deliberate but I was never sure. &nbsp;\u201cCrooky\u201d asked big time questions.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">But he was also humble\u2026open minded.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">John Ricker became a hero as well. &nbsp;He conveyed a deep love for<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">big questions. &nbsp;The kind that start simply but lead to universal truths.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">I was very sorry when I heard that John had become Dean of<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">the Faculty of Educaton. &nbsp;That meant he would no longer be facing<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">down classes of new teachers. &nbsp;Teaching. &nbsp;I even told him so John could make us think<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">about history from many angles. &nbsp;Made us realize we were taking on<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">a sacred trust by shaping young people. &nbsp;He had respect. &nbsp;Without<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">respect , as I mentioned, no solid teacher-student learning can occur.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">One of his methods was similar to Crooky but different also. &nbsp;When a&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">student asked John a question there was often a pause\u2026a dead silence&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">in the room while John considered his answer. &nbsp;In 1963 the silence was aided<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">and abetted by drawing on a cigarette and then reaching for his coffee cup.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Dead and total silence when he did that. &nbsp; W were like the Israelites waiting<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">for Moses to bring word from on high. &nbsp;And John consumed books like a<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">bull does ensilage with one different. The ideas in a good book went to<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">his brain and not his stomach.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Life takes curious twists and turns. &nbsp;Most surprising of these twists and<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">turns is that both &nbsp;Evan Cruickshank and John Ricker became good<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">friends. &nbsp; Peers in the pursuit of knowledge. &nbsp;Shapers of the minds<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">of students. &nbsp;Both of them pushed me towards Parkdale Collegiate.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\u201cIf you teach at that school, you will never want to leave, Alan.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">So true.<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">NOW FOR THE CHALLENGE<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">Who are your heroes?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><br class=\"\">REMEMBER THE SODER IN THE COFFEE CUP?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">WHO IS EARL BIRNEY?<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">\n<div class=\"orig_8544347\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(20, 24, 35); color: rgb(20, 24, 35); font-family: Roboto, \"Droid Sans\", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16.5px;\">A spider&#8217;s body<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">limp and hairy<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">appeared at the bottom of my coffee&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">The waiter being Castilian<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">said passionately nothing<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">And why indeed should apologies<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">be made to me&nbsp;<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">It was I who was looking in<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">at the spider<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">It might be years<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">before I slipped and drowned<br style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\" class=\"\">in somebody else&#8217;s cup<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"7E746082-540C-4CC4-BCF3-5CB86A49FC3C\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d202-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"5386D73F-7821-4B66-A7F2-D36B7C567A0D\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d08c-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">WHAT IS THE BEST SCHOOL? &nbsp;EASY TO ANSWER\u2026THE BEST SCHOOL IS THE SCHOOL YOU ARE TEACHING IN TODAY\u2026MAKE<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>IT THAT WAY. &nbsp;NOT YESTERDAY\u2019S SCHOOL OR TOMORROW\u2019S SCHOOL. &nbsp;THE SCHOOL YOU ARE TEACHING IN TODAY IS<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">BEST AND YOU HAVE A DUTY TO MAKE IT SO.<br class=\"\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"D299D5C0-A5C5-4042-8F2B-DF2E0AD697EA\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9ef24-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">A LOT OF MY HEROES AT THE UIVERSITY OFTORONTO WERE ON OUR FOOTBALL TEAM\u2026.ABOVE<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"880FB552-0B4E-4ADC-BF28-C019C38D68FE\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9fd7f-1.jpg\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\">PRINCIPAL SHIELA HAMBLETON WAS A VERY KIND AND SHARING HERO\u2026LED BY EXAMPLE<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" apple-inline=\"yes\" id=\"D42AF082-B61D-48EA-A2CF-7B4262A09D37\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_9d979-1.jpg\"><\/p>\n<blockquote type=\"cite\" class=\"\">\n<div dir=\"auto\" style=\"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;\" class=\"\">\n<div class=\"\">HEROES IN MY LIFE CAME IN ALL KINDS OF SHAPES AND FORMS\u2026TEACHERS AND STUDENTS.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"\"><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<p><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<p><br class=\"\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Note..this episode is far too long \u2026SOME DID NOT GET FULL ARTICLE SO I CUT MANY ILLUSTRATIONS\u2026HOPE IT WORKS &nbsp;NOW EPISODE 402 &nbsp; &nbsp;MAKE ROOM FOR HEROES: AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN RICKER&nbsp; alan skeoch august 2021 JOHN RICKER\u2026EDUCATOR\u2026A MAN WITH HEROES IN HIS LIFE AT THE END OF THIS EPISODE TRY AND RECORD THE HEROES [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9973"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9973\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}