Volume 2 addresses a kaleidoscope of stories that primarily, but not exclusively, occurred in the United States. It describes in principle the trials, and tribulations of a recent immigrant to the United States, and its derived lessons. The genesis of 'Letters to Grant' was the birth of Grant on the last day of 2009, and the realization of a 70-year-old grandfather, that he has an extremely limited time window for transferring his life lessons to his grandson. Facing this dilemma, this book is the grandfathers attempt to circumvent the time problem by means of specific actual short stories and derived general lessons. 'Letters to Grant' starts with stories that occurred during the prosecution of World War II in Germany and the living conditions during that time, and its impact on the then very young grandfather. The content of Volume 1 deals primarily with family stories, initially the ones that took place in the grandfathers' birth country, Germany, and later, the ones that happened in his adopted country, The United States of America. The structure of the book lends itself as a template for other grandparents to write their own unique family stories and general lessons for their grandchildren to learn. The following is a sample of the first 25 lessons derived from the various stories: Lessons for Pre-Teenage Years 1)Let your mother know your feelings about her. It is essential that you tell her frequently how you feel about her and how indispensable she is to you. 2)Your mother will always be your biggest ally. Let her know that you appreciate her efforts. 3)Family is vital; never forget that. 4)Never forget that time together is short and always remember that we have no control over time. Therefore, use all the available time together wisely. 5)Parents try to better the lives of their children, even though the recipients might not appreciate it all the time. 6)Choose your friends wisely. They will have a tremendous impact on your life. 7)It is not the number of close friends you have, but the quality of friends that are relevant. 8)Friends help you in your maturing process. Good friends tell you openly and honestly when you stray from your values. 9)Good friends help each other without attaching any conditions. 10)Dogs are devoted companions for little kids. While a little kid might try to wander away from his buddy, a dog will never do the same. Lose a kid with a dog, find the dog and you find the kid. 11)Even dogs know their limit. Do not underestimate the value of a smart, dependable dog. 12)Help a dog and gain a friend. Life has a way to reward praiseworthy deeds in entirely unexpected ways. Hundi turned out to be a true protector of our kids. 13)Not all dogs are friendly to all people. 14)Respect the territory of a mean dog. 15)If a dog can flatten, tires imagine what it can do to your legs! 16)Desire beats talent every day! 17)If you want to learn, occupy the first row to be as close as possible to the teacher. 18)If you want to be a troublemaker, also occupy the first row to be as close as possible to the teacher. 19)It is fascinating that the front row offers the greatest latitude for both desires. It is a hiding spot as well as a spot for greatest learning exposure. 20)Teachers always assume that their best students are up front, thus pay little attention to their occupants as a source of disturbance. 21) Never occupy the back row. You cannot learn and cannot make trouble. 22)See your teacher as a catalyst for your future development. Use them as a source of guidance and direction. 23)Transfers from one location to the next can be a terrifically dramatic experience to kids. 24)Assuring the best possible learning environment is crucial for a smooth transition. 25)Teachers will be a hugely significant part during your development years. They can make you or break you. Find one that tries to help and not to hurt or otherwise damage you.
About the Author: The rather diverse background of the author, Dr. Wilhelm (Bill) Haberkorn qualifies him to give uncommon advice to his grandson Grant in particular, or any other youngster growing up anywhere in general. The advice and lessons given in both volumes of his labor of love, 'Letters to Grant' are strictly derived from actual situations experienced by him on his meandering journey while reaching the ripe old age of 72 in 2012. The author is a technology transfer immigrant to the United States where an original contractual stay of 3 years commencing in the late '60's, over time, resulted in a United States Citizenship during the last 45+ years. The serendipitous road travel by him commencing in war torn Germany with his birth in 1940 and subsequent struggles to escape poverty during the post war years in Germany and his migration to the US in 1967 are just a few of the many periods that are the basis of both books. Those rather tough times put him a unique position to reflect on his lessons learned during that time. One particular aspect of his journey is his description of the process, in the form of stories and lessons learned that allowed him to boot strap himself through the pursued of higher education from severe poverty to a comfortable way of life in the United States, all accomplished primarily through own initiatives and virtually no institutional intervention. His arrival in the US in 1967 during the racial changes and struggles in the south threw him into another tumultuous historical period, this time in the United States, resulting in numerous humorous and serious stories from an immigrant's perspective. Letters to Grant Volume 1, 2 are the authors' first attempt in writing a book for general consumption as his first book was a dissertation and as such does not qualify for such a classification. Even though, his writing has improved immensely from his first strictly academic work, the resulting books are far from literary masterpieces, yet, the lessons contained therein are of considerable value for his grandson, Grant, or any other youngster. Volume 1 starts with his first recallable memory during World War II in his birth country Germany and the liberation of Germany by the Allied Forces in 1945 and terminates in principles with his transfer to the United States. Volume 2 describes in general stories encountered in the United States, however, also illustrates a number of stories that do not fit into such classification.