He's only 31 years old. He's been in dangerous and lavish settings as a foreign correspondent and as an entertainment reporter. He does it all and he came to visit us - James Longman, the new King Kong of journalism.
He's new, but moving fast. I wanted him to impart some of his experience upon my students. He talked about learning languages and the importance of education. I asked his age and when he said, "Thirty-one," the students gasped. I took that opportunity to say that he wasn't much older than they are now and therefore, they should be working diligently for their futures.
Many of the students want his job. They raised their hands to say that they wanted his lifestyle. I mean who wouldn't want to go tour with the royals Harry and Meghan? Or cover their wedding? Or fly with the Pope? Or interview a famous soccer team? He had traveled to so many places in the past month: Indonesia, Australia, the Congo, and America, just to name a few!
We had to lasso him to get him into our classroom. Once we did, it was magical!
Oh, yeah, what is he like? Yes, he is gorgeous and dashing! He is well-spoken and has that wonderful deep British accent! Wow!
However, I'm a professional and will say that I was interested in his intellect. When I first saw him on ABC, I thought, "Oh, he's new. Seems very intense." I never thought about his age until I read an article about him and thought, "What?! Really?! He's seems so mature."
He really got me to see his talent with the soccer team from Thailand that was lost in the cave. His every utterance had me on the edge of my seat. He became famous there as Mr. Pineapple, a fruit that is found there and apparently reminds the people of James. He was so sweet as he interviewed the boys and minded the warnings he was given about what he could say to protect their feelings and mental state. HE got the exclusive to interview them. Seeing the fun and playful chemistry he had with the kids made it obvious as to why they let him do it. A star was born!
Well, where did this Houdini come from? Well, he was doing some sort of investigative journalism work in college and then was snatched by the BBC. Then he worked at the BBC and then was snatched by ABC. What a life! You have two titans fighting for you. Gosh!
His life apparently was not all gold in the beginning. He had a bit of a rough start and some emotional twists, but he survived. He is resilient. Something we can all learn. He's a young man with an old soul.
Thank you, James for speaking with my students about how you made your life fabulous through hard work, self-determination, self-confidence, intelligence, and faith. You're a bright star in the television universe!
