As soon as we’re old enough to be autonomous, we find ourselves in situations we can only explain away by saying, “It seemed like a good idea at the time.” Most parents have stories about their children getting in trouble for doing these sorts of things, and most of us[Read More…]
Tag: Editor’s Column
Editor’s Column: Differentiating the urgent from the important
“Your greatest danger is letting the urgent things crowd out the important.” Charles Hummel, “Tyranny of the Urgent” The definition of urgent is: ”Calling for immediate attention.” A grease fire on the stove is urgent. A busted water line is urgent. Arterial bleeding is urgent. Providing aid to the victims[Read More…]
Editor’s Column – You can always find a reason to laugh… start with yourself
“Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.” ~ Elbert Hubbard Small-town community journalism is a different kind of beastie. There are things we do — we once ran an obituary for a beloved family pet — and things we don’t do — run headlines[Read More…]
Editor’s Column – Why are we all so mad?
“A string of reproaches against other people leads one to suspect the existence of a string of self-reproaches with the same content.” ~ Sigmund Freud Have you noticed an increasing level of anger lately, whether in yourself or in others? Does it feel like everyone’s angry switch is stuck in[Read More…]
Editor’s Column – Lightly, child, lightly
“It’s dark because you are trying too hard. Lightly child, lightly. Learn to do everything lightly. Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply. Just lightly let things happen and lightly cope with them. So throw away your baggage and go forward. There are quicksands all about you, sucking at[Read More…]
Editor’s Column – A not-so-grand modern human experiment?
I just watched a TV series set in the 1960s. In every episode, the characters are smoking. At dinner, in bed, at restaurants, in the back of a taxi, etc. While I had to explain to my grandchildren what the ashtrays in the armrests on the airplane were last summer (their[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – Choose-your-own-adventure
“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” ~ Victor E. Frankl You may recall those old “choose-your-own- adventure” novels written for schoolage kids. At the end of[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – More freudenfreude, less schadenfreude
So next time envy arises, remember: Joy is never in short supply. There’s plenty to go around. ~ M. Andrew McConnell You have to love the German language for its potent specificity in turning compound words into descriptors. You may be familiar with the term “schadenfreude,” defined as taking pleasure[Read More…]
Editor’s Column – Housekeeping
A newspaper is a mirror reflecting the public, a mirror more or less defective, but still a mirror. ~ Arthur Brisbane First, I’m extending my profound gratitude to all of you who have extended prayers and well wishes to Caitlin after her accident last week. She is on the mend,[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – Agendas
“It will all come out in the wash.” ~ Cervante (Don Quixote), translation varies I used to assume this meant that the dirt and stains would magically disappear, but once I had kids I realized “going through the wash” revealed things you didn’t know were there, like rocks and small[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – Certainty
“The only certainty is that nothing is certain.” ~ Pliny the Elder Remember when you were little and you had no doubts about the existence of Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy? Remember the crushing sorrow that came with finding out your parents or grandparents drank the milk,[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – You will never have this day again
“We are very good at preparing to live but not very good at living. We know how to sacrifice 10 years for a diploma, and we are willing to work very hard to get a job, a car, a house, and so on. But we have difficulty remembering that we[Read More…]
