A Dyslexic’s Global Adventure
By MICHAEL E. KAPLAN
Learning Life’s Lessons Through Travel
Greater than 1 in 5 children have learning differences. Young Michael could not read and was diagnosed as dyslexic. The school system was unable to help. Academic frustrations and failures ensued, and his future seemed bleak.
Since traditional book learning was not for Michael, as a young man he set out to explore the world for himself. He was immediately hooked! He traveled to well over 100 countries. Adventure after adventure, he realized he was learning life’s lessons by doing. Dyslexia no longer mattered. He had discovered experiential learning. Travel was a ‘real-life’ alternative way to learn and grow.
The Happy Wanderer recounts his exciting and true travel adventures, along with hundreds of breathtaking pictures taken by the author. It includes short stories about fascinating people he met along the way, famous travel quotes, and insights into the world of dyslexia. Each chapter concludes with ‘key learnings’ – lessons he learned from his travels that helped him go on to earn a Harvard degree and become a successful educator and entrepreneur.
Who would enjoy this book?
* Travelers who appreciate global adventures!
* Anyone struggling with a Learning Challenge!
* Readers who enjoy funny but true short stories!
* Photographers who appreciate pictures from around the world!
Some call outs:
“This was my first “how the f*** did I get in this situation” moment in my life.”
“I don’t want to be the guy that was too busy when I was younger, and too exhausted when I was older.”
“As I struggled to read each of the letters just seemed to ‘dance’ together, becoming an entangled foggy mess.”
“I was now officially an “unemployed, fugitive, ski bum!”
“I’ve learned that humans need challenges to overcome; that’s how we find purpose.”
“Ski towns seem to attract unique characters, people who don’t fit in...I’ve met more than my share of eccentric ski bums”
“They didn’t get many tourists in this part of the world and I felt a lot of suspicious eyes on me.”
“New and exotic places, cultures, foods and lifestyles help me reevaluate my own values and priorities.”
Famous travel quotes
“The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore.”
–Vincent Van Gogh
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone”
–Neale Donald Walsch
“It is not the destination where you end up, but the mishaps and memories you create along the way.”
–Penelope Riley
“In the end, we always regret the choices we didn’t make, the love we didn’t accept and the dreams we didn’t fight for.”
–Savi Sharma, Everyone has a Story
“Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow.”
–Anita Desai
“Traveling – it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.”
–Ibn Battuta
“Travel. As much as you can. As far as you can. As long as you can. Life’s not meant to be lived in one place.”
–unknown
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover”
–unknown
“If a child can’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn.”
–Ignacio Estrada
“Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.”
–Anonymous
“Travel far enough, you meet yourself.”
–David Mitchell
“A ship in harbor is safe, but that’s not what ships are built for.”
–John A. Shedd