Another Trip To The VA

It’s the spring of 2022 and we’ve been coping with the coronavirus for a while now. The VA is offering the second booster shot to veterans. Any particular visit to the VA conjures up a vast array of emotions for me, good and bad. Stepping into any VA hospital you will definitely see amputees, and this humbles me every time. Seeing an amputee makes me appreciate the feet and hands I do have and makes me feel guilty when I catch myself complaining about something trivial. Walking through the hallways, sitting in the waiting rooms, or simply being in the presence of other military veterans can stir up stuff you’re still unable to talk about. I’m 61 years old now and these visits to the VA reminds me that some scars can’t be hidden. Veterans are notorious for keeping things bottled up. We have all heard the saying ‘boys don’t cry’, but I personally know that’s not true because every story I’d ever written is a form of me crying. It’s not easy for veterans to bring up past memories. Keeping things tucked away for long stretches of time isn’t healthy. On the average, twenty veterans commit suicide every day. After I got my booster shot the nurse had me sit for observation for about ten minutes in the waiting room. This is probably the hardest part of my visit to the VA because this is where I see myself in the faces of all the other vets sitting around me. We sit in silence, knowing each others’ scars. I served in the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Marine Corps. Whether you’re a military veteran or a civilian, opening up is tough. Here’s the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (800) 273-8255. – Randolph Randy Camp

Kira on The Campaign Trail at Randie's Free Library

It’s great to see people involved and engaging with their community. Canvassing and participating in grassroots campaigning certainly isn’t for everybody. Kira says that she loves it because she gets to meet and chat with so many interesting people. Kira is campaigning for Dr. Megan Srinivas, running for Iowa House District 30. By the way, Kira is an avid reader and her favorite children’s book is ‘Where The Wild Things Are’, which had a big impact on her life.

Books From Heaven: Randie's Free Library

It’s April 21, six days from Randie’s birthday and two boxes of books were dropped off for RANDIE’S FREE LIBRARY early this morning.

Keep Hoping, Don't Give Up

Keep Hoping, Don’t Give Up…Just like many of you, watching what’s happening in Ukraine right now is rough. Seeing the inspiring, fighting spirit of the Ukrainian people reminds me of my favorite children’s book ‘The Little Engine That Could.’ I think I can, I think I can. (And how fitting that the book cover reflects the colors of the Ukrainian flag.) – Randolph Randy Camp

America: Writing Love

Saying what’s in your heart and expressing yourself sometimes can be risky, but it’s such a freeing experience. Although I’ve experienced racial bigotry during my childhood in rural Virginia, and unfortunately during my military years in the U.S. Air Force, I try my best to hold on to the belief that there are still more good people in this world than bad people. And that’s one of the things I enjoy about writing. It allows me to display some of my inner-most thoughts. The White family who places a ‘Black Lives Matter’ sign in their front yard knows that some of their neighbors are saying derogatory and cruel things about them. But, in the long run, the White family who’d made the decision to place the ‘BLM’ sign in their yard had chosen to satisfy their own souls, instead of choosing to be silent. In writing ‘America: No Purchase Necessary’, one of my greatest challenges was to showcase an interracial love story amidst America’s heated racial and political climate. Being yourself and exposing your deeper self is always the best way to go. Sure, you may offend and upset some of your neighbors and some of your (so-called) friends while doing so, but in the end, you realize that they weren’t your true friends anyway. Shifting gears now, on another note, September is ‘Library Card Sign-Up Month’. As a young boy I have fond memories of waiting for the mobile library to make its stop in Spotsylvania County. Today, I’m grateful to that same library system, the Fredericksburg Central Rappahannock Regional Library (along with the Los Angeles Public Library, the Baltimore County Public Library, the Des Moines Public Library, the Erie County and Buffalo Public Library, the Urbandale Public Library, etc) for having my books in their collection. Please visit and take advantage of the many services provided by your local library. – Randolph Randy Camp More at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

The Teacher in You

This on-going pandemic has definitely changed our lives. Some of you parents have become teachers, whether you'd wanted to be or not. And, to your own surprise, maybe you're the greatest teacher ever. In a way, there's a teacher inside all of us. This pandemic has brought that to the forefront.

If you're doing a lot of teaching and schooling at home, please don't forget to utilize one of your greatest assets, which is your local library.

For any parent or teacher, creating your syllabus and following your state's strict curriculum guidelines can be a real challenge. But, finding a way, maybe a creative way, to set aside let's say an hour or so per week, for your kids (students) to simply talk about anything they want to is arguably your greatest tool as a teacher.

In school settings, a student's classroom participation is a vital part of his or her final grade, but sometimes the quiet kid in class gets misjudged. It's common knowledge that these quiet students have a lot of hard stuff on their minds, especially nowadays with the pandemic going on, and at times, their 'stuff' is traumatic and not so easy to speak about. (Similar to military veterans, like myself, coping with hidden scars and a tendency to bottle things up.) But given the right avenue or outlet, even the quiet kid comes out of his or her shell and momentarily at least, they'll have their moment and comfortably feel relaxed enough to share some of their more-deeper thoughts with the class.

Back in elementary school, 'Show n' Tell' time was great because it laid the foundation for some of you who currently have no issues whatsoever with public speaking. As a student gets older, they may or may not have teachers who will set aside classroom time for them to talk openly about their 'stuff'. But for those teachers who do create these special moments the payoff is great.

I feel so strongly about this issue that I created 'Sit n' Talk' time in my latest short novel 'America: No Purchase Necessary', whereby Miss Pritchett's students gets to speak about whatever they want to in front of the entire class.

Lastly, although it's challenging, try to enjoy the teacher in you. (It can be rewarding sometimes....and please utilize and take advantage of your local library whenever possible.) - Randolph Randy Camp

More at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

Randie's Free Library: Finding New Readers

Randie had an enormous book collection. If you'd watched AMY POPILLION 's Facebook live streamed April 9th event you would've seen a portion of Randie's books, and heard how every book has a sticker that says "This book once belonged to the personal library of Randie Camp. To honor her memory, it has been sent out into the world, by her loved ones, to find new readers. May it be as special to you as it was to her." After the April 9th ceremony, guests were invited to take books from Randie's huge collection. Randie's Free Library (located in Des Moines) had many books from Randie's personal collection (but most are already taken, which I know puts a big smile on Randie's face). Also, there's an additional Little Free Library, honoring Randie Danielle Camp, located in Ames, Iowa, near one of Randie's favorite city parks.

Fantastic Book Art done by talented art students from Ames, Iowa in memory of Dr. Randie Danielle Camp, who devoted most of her adult life to teaching the importance of literacy and bibliotherapy.