"Skates," a poem - Cranbrook Review, Spring 2000.

"Writing Faculty" - Tradition, Spring 2000.

"CK Teacher Environmentalist Lectures in Spain" - Crane-Clarion, February 2004.

"Speakers bring Colombia conflict to campus" - Crane-Clarion, May 2004.

"Empire and Exterminism," an essay - New Internationalist, May 2000.

"On the Road to Nowhere," an essay - New Internationalist, 1995 and an accompanying commentary from Understanding The Next Evolution (UTNE).

"Late Summer Wars," an essay - Alley Culture, August 2008.

Senor, you were great. You teach with a passion for education, and a appreciation for language art. I sometimes have memories of your class me and rene, etc and the caca on my shoe incident! Congrats!-David Smith '88

I miss that tiny, oddly shaped classroom upstairs from the map room. Sitting in the back row of that room- in Sr. Watson's spanish IV, 7th hour class, junior year was unforgettable. Sr. Watson cultivated my love for Spanish- his passion for the language, cultures, and history made every minute of the class brilliant. Muchas gracias.

One of my favorite people ever. Thank you for inspiring me, believing in me and listening to all my thoughts. I wish I could still walk upstairs to a small classroom, let it all out and have someone say welcome.

Senor Watson was my first upper school Spanish Teacher. I will never forget that room upstairs thinking, "I am never going to pass this course". I thought at the time that I was taking a language requirement just to finish school. I never thought that skill would end up playing such a large role in my career. Now having lived and worked in Mexico, working with clients in El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica and the rest of Central America, I now get it. The drive to teach us more than just a language has finally paid off. This training allowed me to move out of my comfort zone and take a hard look at how people from other areas of the world live. It has allowed me to embrace other cultures and learn to incorporate the good of each into my own beliefs. As many other teachers at Cranbrook have done, he has helped make me a better person. Thank you.

Mr. Watson taught me Spanish but what he really left with me was the remarkable way he viewed life. People on these pages say he taught them english, I see that subject as befitting him because of his masterful way of communicating. Be it Spanish or English, Mr. Watson was a teacher, an honorable and disciplined voice of passion and conviction. He understood life and what it meant to love it. Whether he knows this or not, (I was not one of his best students) However, I felt that he saw me, a person who could give more of himself and he pushed me to ask the tough questions about what really mattered and what I really wanted out of my CK experience. He helped shape Cranbrook into what remains an exquisite memory for me. Shortly, graduation year my mother was diagnosed with Breast Cancer which she eventually lost her battle to...it was a hard time. But it was Senor Watson who instilled in me a feeling of desperation to acheive and the strength to give my all and do my best even though all I wanted to do was give up. He is a wonderful teacher and friend to all students of the world and is a marvelous credit to the wonders that are CK.

Mi primo, Senor Watson. He was not just a spanish teacher. He was my first spanish teacher ever and instilled an appreciation for the language and culture which continues to this day. More than that, Senor Watson gave me a critical lesson I will never forget. After forgetting my spanish book a few times, and consequently missing out on some of the key lessons for the week, he pulled me aside and asked me if I was going to let one book get in the way of my success in his class. To me the message was, I cannot let myself get in the way of my own success. Sometimes we are afraid to soar to the highest heights and we make excuses, but in his teaching and clearly in the life he lives David Watson is an example of just how high one can go.

David's classes were some of my favorites. I was exposed to what has become some of my favorite art and poetry through his surrealism class and, even though struggling to stay awake through "Koyaanisqatsi" on a sunny afternoon wasn't the highlight of my last Cranbrook spring semester, his Nature class was wonderful. I have a great deal to be thankful to David for, aside from grammar, for which I assume he wants no credit, and I continue to use many of his teachings.

I will forever be grateful to Mr. Watson for never accepting any BS or fluff I wrote in my papers. I will remember when he returned my first paper to me by crumpling it up and throwing it across the round table, telling me never to turn in BS like that again. He constantly pushed us to re-write our papers, making them better, contradicting our own thesis statements. Any fluff in our papers was immediately crossed out. This forced me to write clearly, concisely, and to write much better fluff. I attribute my excellent written communications skills to the relentless grading and remarks that Mr. Watson wrote on my papers. He read EVERYTHING. His political views were another amusement. In between writing and re-writing papers, we were doing 2 a week. I remember being able to crank out high quality papers in one sitting the night beore it was due. At the time it was torture. I realized how lucky I was to have him as a teacher when I started in college and saw how poorly other communicated on paper. So Mr. Watson, Thank you.

Mr. Watson taught me more outside of the classroom than I ever learned inside of one. His values, talent, and integrity continue to inspire me and I still carry the memories of working on the Crane with me everywhere I go.

Mr. Watson was my favorite teacher! He didn't fit the mold and inspired me to follow my own passions.

Dr. Watson in the English Dept showed me that I did have a talent for writing, and he pushed me to better develop my skills.

With five words scrawled on the bottom of my two-page English paper, David Watson changed my life. See me about Crane-Clarion, he wrote. Now, seven years later (after 3 incredible years working for the Crane-Clarion and 4 incredible years working for the Harvard Crimson), I am passionately pursuing a career in journalism. Without Mr. Watsons guidance and encouragement, I dont know where Id be. For one year in high school, he was my 10th grade English teacher, guiding me through The Great Gatsby and other literary masterpieces. For the next two years, when I was an editor of the Crane-Clarion, he worked closely with me to improve my writing and taught me many skills that I still use on a daily basis in my professional career. He has been a close friend and advisor ever since. I will always be grateful for that one moment in 10th grade, when he saw potential in me that I had not yet seen in myself and took the time to help me achieve it.

David Watson served as one of the most meaningful human beings I have interacted with in my life. At college, we continue to correspond and meet when I'm back in Detroit. I continue to think of his advice and our relationship as one of the most menaingful things to come out of my Cranbrook experience.

Mr. Watson was my english teacher sophomore year (I think...or maybe junior year) and then senior year I took an English course with him, if i remember correctly, based around a nature theme. He was one of the most challenging teachers that I have ever had. He caused me to grow tremendously academically and as a person. I imagine that he surpasses in greatness the professors at even the best universities.