While repeatedly proofing the text of this book for typo’s and errors related to chronology, it  seemed as if my father’s voice was coming through as if he was telling his story. It is expected that he has now been gone for just about ten years, that this would have a profound emotional and psychological impact on me. I was happy to hear that I was not alone. My wife and I got together with her cousins yesterday  who also read the book and they mentioned the same observation, without any prompting from me.  They remembered him and said it seemed as if he was reading the book to them.

I might be biased as his son to tell you how always seemed to find precisely the right thing to do or to say. During the early to mid 1960’s, he had just completed an eye exam on a male college student who was attending Harvard. He was middle eastern and he asked my father to call him “Karim”.  At the conclusion of the exam, he asked my father if he could recommend any restaurants in the area for lunch. They had to be vegetarian on account of his strict dietary observances. My father, who was familiar with dietary observances, suggested that he share his peanut butter and jelly sandwich with him and they did. In later years, my father became a revered professor of Optometry and Registrar at The New England College and author of the book about which I am blogging. Karim also went on to become a great man back home. This story illustrates my father’s compassion towards others whether they were a co-worker, student, patient or Army buddy.

In future blogs I will convey additional true stories of my father.

Neil Kozol