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Above, Dr. Juan Harrison has compiled some of his columns into a book of what he claims is mostly the truth.
Dr. Harrison tells the truth—mostly
Life got you down? In need of an attitude adjustment? Try Dr. Juan Harrison’s new book, The Mostly True Stories of Dr. Harrison. It’s uplifting and entertaining, part memoir, part vignette—with a dose of good advice thrown in. Topics range from America and patriotism to the freedom/opportunity to succeed or fail to childhood memories and lessons learned. Harrison, a self-described “retired school principal, veteran, yard man, husband, granddad and Sunday school teacher,” explained the book as a collection of 110 of his weekly columns from his Facebook page. He started writing the column in March 2018, and it grew from there.
“We currently have around 1,300 followers on Facebook,” Harrison said. “It’s mostly women age 50 and up, but the number of men is growing.”
Harrison never set out to be a writer, he said.
“I didn’t intend to write a book,” he said. “It’s my son’s fault.” He said his oldest son, now a pastor in California, tricked him into writing his first book, Serving Happiness, by having Harrison dictate his thoughts on the key to happiness. The son transcribed the recordings and presented his father with a copy of the book for Christmas 2015.
Harrison’s second book, Class Rules: A Principal’s Guide to a Principled Life, is Harrison’s way of saying, “Hang in there—life is a marathon, not a sprint.” It lists his nine rules for succeeding at life, for both the young and old alike.
“Tales” debuted on Amazon July 1, and sales are going well. Harrison also sells copies and will deliver within Hopkins County and the surrounding area. He sold out his first shipment within 24 hours and is now on his fourth.
“I’m trying to give people the ability to turn lemons into lemonade,” Harrison said. “It’s my way of saying, ‘Hang in there’ to people who are struggling through tough times—depression, the death of a spouse, job loss and just life.”
Dr. Harrison posts a column on Facebook each Friday at 1 p.m. More than a thousand people follow of his weekly stories of encouragement. To invite Dr. Harrison to speak at your school, church or organization, or to set up a personal delivery of his book, send an email to jaharrison45@gmail.com.