Ship Happens!
A Tiger Cruise Tale
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
THEN THE WORLD CHANGED. One dreadful morning on September 11, 2001, a ruthless Islamic terrorist group, al-Qa’ida, attacked the United States of America, killing 2973 innocent civilians in the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and on United Airlines flight 93 when it crashed near Shanksville in the rural farmlands of western Pennsylvania.
Following the vicious sneak attack planned by the murdering Osama bin Laden, the rejected son of a Saudi Arabian billionaire, President George W. Bush relentlessly prosecuted al-Qa’ida in a global war against terrorism that began in Afghanistan and spilled over a year and a half later into Iraq against the repressive régime of Saddam Hussein. As the United States Government made war in Afghanistan, Tim’s patriotism stirred his sense of duty. Four months after 9/11, my telephone rang.
“Dad, how ya doin’?”
“Yo, Tim. I’m doing fine. How are you?” It was good to hear his voice again. In a sudden flashback to my teenage years, I recalled my mother’s voice when I often slept away from home as a guest of friends in the City of Euclid. When she would finally locate me at one of their houses on the weekend, Mom would plead, “Please call me more often and tell me where you are and what you’re doing.”
I was selfishly adrift from my family during my high school years, not caring about my mother or her feelings. But now, listening to Tim on the other end of the line, I knew what it meant to hear the voice of a child calling home.
In the past, when Tim telephoned, he often had news of his recent accomplishments. I wondered what news he was bringing that day.
“Dad, do you remember that letter you sent me, the one where you said if I didn’t do something with my life, I’d hover around that ten dollar an hour job for the rest of my life?”
I paused, but didn’t answer.
“Well, I joined the United States Navy,” he said.
I almost dropped the phone. “Tim’s joined the Navy,” I yelled to Betz, who was working a crossword puzzle in the family room.
“What? You’re kidding!” she exclaimed, dropping her jaw as she got out of her seat.
Tim was finally doing something with his life.
TIM WAS SWORN IN for a six-year hitch on March 18, 2002, guaranteeing him a job with advanced technical training and automatic promotion to petty officer in twelve months. But Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan was still hot. Although the Taliban, Afghanistan’s ruling faction and cradle of Islamic fascism had been routed by December 2001, Osama bin Laden was still alive. He had escaped and was believed to be hiding in the mountains near Pakistan. The murdering bastard was still on the run.
On March 20, 2003, one year after Tim’s enlistment, the war on terrorism continued as the United States launched Operation Iraqi Freedom against Saddam Hussein and the nation of Iraq. Two weeks earlier on March 5, Tim had been deployed on an eight-month tour of the Persian Gulf on the mighty warship USS Bridge (AOE 10), a fast combat supply ship in support of the USS Nimitz nuclear aircraft carrier.
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
Ship Happens! is a journal—a personal blending of the youthful memories of my two children and a six-night adventure on a Tiger Cruise as a guest on a United States Navy warship, the USS Bridge. From my sailor son’s initial invitation by e-mail from the Persian Gulf, culminating with the heart-warming reunion with his family on the Bremerton naval pier, this 22-photo documented book chronicles the nine-day event, from the initial problems associated with traveling to the well-planned military demonstrations that took place on a daily basis aboard ship.
Following my son Tim’s eight-month deployment to the Persian Gulf when the Iraqi War broke out in 2003, my daughter and I were invited on the Tiger Cruise, sailing from Pearl Harbor to Bremerton Naval Base, Washington. But the cruise was more than an adventure. It was to honor my son for enlisting in the Navy following the terrorist attack on 9/11 and to encourage my twenty-five year old daughter to take advantage of the opportunity to see what living was like on a military warship. I wanted her to join me as family ambassadors when the ship returned to homeport, and Tim greeted his wife who had delivered their first child while he was on duty in the Gulf. The book concludes with a heart-warming scene and photograph of Tim holding his newborn baby while his adoring wife and tearful sister look on.
About the Author
A commercial photographer for nine years prior to becoming an insurance agent for the past thirty-four years, Tim Richards earned his Master of Financial Services degree in 2000 from the American College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He served in the U.S. Army (1961-1964) during the Cold War as section chief, fire direction control, 35th Artillery Group, 37th Artillery, Dachau, Germany.
Tim is currently the owner of an insurance agency in Westlake, Ohio, and is a part-time student of creative writing at Cleveland State University. His nonfiction prose and poetry have been published sixteen times in eleven issues (two cover issues) of the Vindicator, a multicultural magazine of Cleveland State University. He also took second place in the CSU Spring 2007 Creative Writing Contest.
In 2002, he self-published a 505-page genealogical and personal history volume titled The Richards and Barry Families, Library of Congress #2001095928. Tim has two children and lives in Olmsted Twp., Ohio, with his wife, Betz, who is also an aspiring writer.