It was about a year ago — well, actually, it was exactly 52 weeks ago — this Saturday space was utilized to mark the occasion of the 12th edition of our “Who We Are” publication. The 13th, a baker’s dozen, appeared Thursday.
I have to chuckle at myself, something I seem to be doing more often as I age. This past year, I’ve made some subtle hints that maybe it’s time I step a bit further into retirement by giving up some of the projects I’ve held onto such as this annual effort.
As much as I have begun to whine (just a little) about the planning and preparation for the edition, I once again discovered the joy and satisfaction of putting the pieces of the puzzle together. First I worry about which stories to pursue and assign then I worry we will have too many stories and then not enough. Worry is not supposed to be a part of retirement.
There is satisfaction in reading and editing the stories that all of our writers produce which, as noted last year, includes a number of retired and former N-B people and some others. A particularly noteworthy addition this year is Alan Daugherty’s idea to include an historical profile of one of our predecessors — a “Who We Were” part of “Who We Are.”
There is satisfaction in hearing about how much the writers enjoyed the research and their tales of talking to their subjects. Bob Caylor, for example, latched onto the suggestion of Norwell Educator of the Year Mark Weinert’s time in the Peace Corps. “(He) probably provided the brightest light in a couple of our kids’ experiences at Norwell High School,” he told me. Bob’s wife Tanya is plenty busy with her duties at Bi-County Services but couldn’t resist diving into an update about the Wells County Trails group, one of her passions. There is satisfaction in telling these stories — those that I get to write and those I get to edit and frame into the presentation. Fun stuff.
All those positive vibes about who we are locally was interrupted Thursday night by a look at what the world must think who we are as a nation. To watch two guys — one of whom is incoherent and the other unhinged, one of whom “beat Medicare” and the other believes he was the greatest president in history with the greatest record in any category you can imagine — reduce themselves to arguing about their prowess on the golf course … well, it can take some wind out your sails.
But I digress.
This past week included a nice chat with Phil Swain — who is as equally understated in his self analysis as what we witnessed Thursday evening from both candidates’ bloated self analyses — regarding his impending retirement from PNC Bank and his long history of community involvement. We talked about what’s been important in his career and what plans and — the fun part — lack of specific plans he has for the next chapter. His story would have fit well into the WWA format.
A detail from that conversation fits in here: Phil is a native of Rushville; his career eventually brought him to Bluffton.
“I didn’t know anybody, not a single person when I moved here,” he said. But he soon heard a familiar name: Jack Cross.
“Jack was a legend in Rushville,” Phil told me. “He’s in about every hall of fame there is down there.” Cross, as many know, had a hall of fame career at Bluffton High School as a coach and athletic director. Due to the age difference, Phil had not known him when Jack was making local history in Rushville, but when Phil married a local gal and bought a house a few years after moving here, he found Jack Cross living right across the street. “Pretty amazing,” Phil said.
“Who we are” has a lot to do with who we were and where we come from. Phil had to move to Bluffton to meet his native community’s local hero. Seems apropos.
Like discussions with others of our age about retirement, this second chance at what we do is more than worth what we did to get here. In my case, I am blessed to be able to visit with people and tell their stories and also write about my gripes and complaints from time to time. Even though I still gripe and complain about that while I do it. Which makes me chuckle at myself. Which I guess is part of who we are.
miller@news-banner.com
