Thursday, May 9, 2024

Number 780

 


By G. E. Shuman

 

It was mid-May. The year was 1994, and yours truly, somehow, a few weeks prior to that time, had screwed up his courage enough to ask his friend Gary Hass, the co-publisher of The World, for permission to write a column for the paper. Gary was, and is, a brave man, and didn’t hesitate to say ‘yes’ to my request. (I hope it was not a decision he has regretted.)

That day, all those years ago, I remember telling Gary that I wanted to write about the ‘times’ of life; you know, the simple events of living that we all share and cherish here in our great state of Vermont.

So, my humble column space, right here, every other week (and a page or two after the obits,) has been about family experiences, friends, foibles, and feelings that you and I have in common, even if we have never met. I hope you have enjoyed my take on experiencing the many passing seasons and years during my time with The World. It has been good for my soul to remind myself and others of the many blessings of life, to bring to people’s minds the scents and sights of candle-lit pumpkins at Halloween, of evergreens and frosty scenes at Christmastime, of the sights and sounds of the seashore and sandcastle building with my kids and grandkids those many summers.

Gary’s unhesitating word of permission that first day launched my undeserved entrance into the world of writing for newspapers and magazines, of publishing novels, and eventually of teaching a generation of high school students to love English and the written word. I hope Gary knows how much that all has meant to me, and how much a simple ‘yes’ can have the power to change someone’s life.

So, here I am, here we are, at what I believe is attempt number seven hundred and eighty in my quest to entertain and inform Vermonters and others about the fun and fantastic things that life brings, sometimes through the very minutia of it. That means this edition represents my 30th anniversary occupying this space.

Writing for The World has always been my therapy. I have learned to appreciate life and love here and have benefited from the experience far more than my readers have. This paper has been a true home for my many meandering thoughts and words, and I thank you for reading them.

I want to thank Gary Hass, my friend and publisher, for this amazing opportunity. I do wonder a bit what the next thirty years will bring.

 

 

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