William C. Gould

About the Author

Old Bill, having lived seventy-nine years, has a broad beam, both anatomically and in life experience. Over the years I lived on both coasts of the U.S. and in the heartland, enjoying both small town life and the bustle of large cities. I also sprinkled in several years of working and studying abroad. All of which emphasized the incredible changes we have seen in our lifetime and how difficult it has become for us to relate to the younger generations, who think it has always been this way. They seem to think that we were never young, never faced these same issues or felt these same emotions. Of course the names and shapes of people and things have changed, but the human drama is pretty constant. This book is my answer; it is a grandfather’s use of his memories to debunk “old-fashioned” and emphasize the importance of life’s basic values- but in a fun grandfatherly way.

The “Grandpa, Were You Young Once” book project started quite simply, nearly five years ago, an idea born of the desire to give some of my success back to the community. The original idea was to help seniors get more use out of computers by creating information, formats and tools that they could relate to and find useful. In the course of the lectures I was overwhelmed by the uniqueness of each senior’s life and the richness of stories hidden in most people’s minds. In one class I had an RAF fighter pilot from WWII who had never talked about his experiences. In another I had a retired principal from one of the toughest schools in California, but the most interesting might have been a retired cleaning woman who had put three kids though college. Each one had a unique story and lessons of living to share that should not be simply lost in time. They were the stories and values that we learned and that future generations need, unless they want to learn them the hard way too.

From this experience came my “Grandfather” book, the third book I have written and surely the one that will bring the most pleasure; an easy guess, as both prior books were textbooks. The stories and examples in the book are my personal examples but they are simply tools to organize and trigger a larger number of the reader’s unique memories. The book also allows room for the reader’s notes to be added and then the entire book becomes a family legacy, or if the reader prefers, simply a wonderful source of entertainment.

This book is who we were, what makes a life a life, and the values and lessons learned which created the abundance our children enjoy today. We learned many lessons the hard way. Hopefully by passing on our memories, we can help our kids avoid the same pitfalls we faced and teach them to enjoy the truly wonderful moments along the way. At a minimum, I hope the book will make the reader feel better about today.