Where Were You On November 22, 1963?

November 22, 1963 was probably one of the most memorable days in my life, and even now, 50 years later, I remember it clearly. I was working at the Federal Building in West Los Angeles at the time, while going to school. It was a boring job, having something to do with home loans, as I recall. I worked from 8-12 everyday. There was a buzz around the office around 11:30am, people were saying that Kennedy had been shot. I hurried to finish my work and ran out of the building, waiting to be picked up by my mom. "Is it true, is it true?" I shouted to her as I jumped in the car. "Yes, it's true, but we have no other details yet," she said. With that I started to cry. John F. Kennedy was the first president that I felt was my president. There was just something about him that gave me confidence everything would be all right. It didn't hurt that he was handsome, charming and brilliant, and I couldn't imagine anyone wanting to kill him. Boy, was I naive. A few other days are imbedded in my memory and here they are: Death of Princess Diana: I was in Tijuana, on my way back from Puerto Nuevo. Puerto Nuevo is a small town near Ensenada, that has dozens of lobster restaurants, one better than the next. We had gone there for dinner with our horse trainer, two jockeys, and some other friends. We were getting ready to cross the border when we heard the terrible news. I will never forget that night. First American to walk on the moon: Ron and I had just recently met, and we were having lunch at Hamburger Hamlet in Westwood. To be quite honest, we were so engrossed in each other that we didn't realize what a really big deal it was. The day the challenger exploded on liftoff: I was teaching 3rd grade in North Hollywood, California, and we were watching the liftoff as a class. At first the kids did not understand what had happened, and I squirm in my seat remembering how difficult that event was to explain to 8 year olds. 9-11: I was in bed, and got an early morning call from David, our son the stockbroker. I figured he was calling to tell me about the stockmarket, but he was yelling, "Turn on the TV." I could not believe my eyes. I'm sure many of you who were old enough remember in detail the attack on Pearl Harbor, the bombing of Hiroshima, and other momentous occasions know where you were and what you were doing. It's amazing how our brains do not let us forget. So Thanksgiving is just two days away, and it's a good time to reflect and think of all we are thankful for. Life has its ups and downs for all of us, but when you think about the big picture, most of us have a pretty fantastic life. Here we are in the greatest nation on earth. Let's enjoy our family and friends, and hope for peace and prosperity for America.