Real Life Stories

Part memoir and part medical history, Real Life Stories presents remembrances, personal anecdotes, and stories from the life and career of Paul Emerson. It also shares the harrowing and heartwarming story of a young Filipino boy's struggle for survival. Paul Emerson was born in a small town in Pennsylvania. He grew up in a close-knit extended family in his grandfather's house. But his upbringing was much like those of other young boys who were born in the 1930s. He was seven years old when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, an event that is etched in his mind forever. He shares his memories of growing up and of various events in his adult life. He also shares the memorable story of Rinor Marcial, a young boy from the Philippines who was badly burned with gasoline during the Christmas holiday one year. After being treated by local medical center, he returned to his bamboo bungalow home, where his sleeping position caused complications. Rinor was discovered by a missionary who was determined to get him admitted to a Shriner's Burns Institute in Galveston, Texas. His heartwarming story is just one of the many Real Life Stories included in this memorable collection from Paul Emerson.