I Have Lived the Life: A Collection of Stories

Nels B. Nelson was born in Arendal, Norway. He moved to California with his parents at the age of nine, but struggled to adapt in the unfamiliar country he would eventually call home. Nels earned his doctorate as an educator from the University of California at Berkeley in the 1960s, and enjoyed a sixty-year career in education. Nels's chosen career path and charismatic charm allowed him multiple opportunities to travel abroad, including study trips to China, Taiwan, and Siberia. Nels's memorable adventures traveling the world, for both business and pleasure, remain among his greatest joys. The people he met along his journeys remain among his most beloved memories.

In "I Have Lived the Life," Nelson relays highlights not only from some of these educational excursions, but also from his own personal history. At the center of these simple, heartfelt tales are people who have touched his life with insight, common sense, and wit. These people come from different countries and backgrounds, but all of them share a common humanity and a desire to live the good life. Some of the encounters were long, while others were far too brief, but all of them have impacted Nelson with a gift worth sharing.