Education

Education is part of the legacy and cultural heritage of the Kerns family.
It began as far back as William Brewster, born 1567 in England. In an age when almost no one had the opportunity to go to school, William Brewster attended Cambridge University. He was the presiding elder among the Saints on the Mayflower, and was, therefore, one of the very first Europeans to immigrate to America. William Brewster is my 11th great grandfather.

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Right Way Pilot

As a pre-schooler Marjorie hated primary. She didn’t know the other children, and the lessons were dull.
Back then the classes had different names than they do now. The next class that Marjorie would be in was the “Right Way Pilots.” She couldn’t wait to graduate to that class. She says, “Finally, there was light at the end of the tunnel. I was going to learn to fly! The manual had a picture on the front cover of a chubby-faced kid flying a stubby airplane. That looked so fun! I could just see myself maneuvering my plane over the heads of the people as I flew down the stairs at the church. I never imagined flying my plane outdoors. It was just in the church.”

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Sequel to Gun Safety

I don’t share the enthusiasm for guns that some of my sons and grandsons have. I previously wrote about my experiences with guns. (See Gun Safety in That Ye May Learn Wisdom).

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Gun Safety

I just awoke from a dream. I pay attention to my dreams, especially when they’re vivid and meaningful as this one was.

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Languages

I am reading The Two Islands by Thomas Condon. It is a narrative of the geological history of Oregon written for the purpose of (in Thomas Condon’s words) “increas(ing) the interest of the young.” (Introduction, pg 5).

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Joseph Smith’s Vocabulary

How is it that a barely-schooled farm boy of the early 1800s could have acquired the vocabulary that Joseph Smith possessed? I have several observations about Joseph and his abilities.

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Discipline

The leaders of our ward are struggling with what must seem to them a huge problem. It is a family of four children ages 11 to 4, their unemployed father, and their cancer-stricken mother. The mother has just been sent off to Utah to be cared for by her sisters-in-law. Her leg broke because of the cancer, and her outlook is bleak. The father quit his job to take care of the children.

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