National Military Appreciation Month: A NORAD Experience

 


In honor of National Military Appreciation Month, Arthur Yavelberg, author of the multi-award-winning book, A Theology for the Rest of Us, relates a story told to him by his father, who served at NORAD --

My father was a "career man" in the Air Force for 25 years, starting when it was still the "Army Air Corps."  He was supposed to be a radio man on bombers--until someone in charge of the training program noticed he was wearing glasses.  

"How long have you been wearing those?" the officer demanded to know.  

"I believe I was born with them, Sir!" 

My father was one of those who believed the term "military intelligence" was an oxymoron, but he was intelligent enough not to say so in so many words.  As it turned out, he was reassigned to NORAD, essentially a string of military bases across Canada and the northern US in anticipation of a Soviet nuclear strike launched across the North Pole.  He came home one day and somberly announced, "I hate to break it to you, but we're all going to die."  

We gasped, but then he went on to explain with a reassuring smile that the radar at the post had identified a barrage of missiles coming from the North.  The military immediately took steps to respond.  After all, given the speed of intercontinental missiles, the margin for error was very slim.  

Fortunately, this "missile barrage" turned out to be a flock of Canadian geese.  We all laughed--as my dad did with that glint in his eye.  

But I thought about it and asked him, "But suppose it really was a missile strike, and it was dismissed as just a flock of geese.  What then?"  

My dad looked at me and said, with the same smile but none of the glint in his eye, "It's nothing to worry about.  Trust me, if that happens, there will be nothing to worry about."



A Theology for the Rest of Us has earned the following awards:

Best Indie Book Award
Literary Titan Silver Aware
American BookFest Best Books Award finalist


For more posts about Arthur and his book, click HERE.

For more military appreciation stories, click HERE.

Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter

Follow MSI Press on Twitter, Face Book, and Instagram. 

Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC?
Check out information on how to submit a proposal.

Interested in receiving a free copy of this or any MSI Press LLC book
 in exchange for reviewing a current or forthcoming MSI Press LLC book?
Contact editor@msipress.com.

Want an author-signed copy of this book?
Purchase the book at 25% discount (use coupon code FF25)
and concurrently send a written request to orders@msipress.com. 

   
MSI Press is ranked among the top publishers in California.
Check out our rankings -- and more -- HERE.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

In Memoriam: Carl Don Leaver

Image
  1948-2021 It is with great sadness that MSI Press notes the death of Carl Leaver, CEO of the Press and typesetter and graphic designer par excellence . Many authors have expressed not only condolences but also a sense of legacy from covers he designed that they love.  Here is his obituary: On August 16, 2021, Carl Don Leaver of San Juan Bautista passed into eternal rest. A forester with the US Forest Service in Idaho and Montana, he turned to nature photography while working in the Bitterroot National Forest. His photographs graced national magazine covers and on a weekly basis the local paper of Hamilton, MT, the Ravalli Republican. He later worked on photography projects for the US Army (AFEES) and taught photography at the New York Institute of Technology in Amman, Jordan. His final career change led him to computer graphics and publishing as co-owner of MSI Press LLC; his many typeset books and book covers have helped MSI Press authors win a large number of awards over the years,
Read more

A Publisher's Conversation with Authors: Book Marketing vs Book Promotion

Image
It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  Today's post looks at the difference between book marketing and book promotion, two terms that are frequently confused. Leading to the confusion is that some of the same activities are needed for both. In fact, good marketing is dependent upon good promotion. Perhaps the essential difference is that marketing focuses on sales, and promotion focuses on awareness --  noting that without awareness, sales generally do not happen. Book Marketing Book marketing includes promotion, sales, and increasing awareness of the availability of the book. It generally starts with a marketing plan that identifies the target audiences and selects marketing t
Read more