Thank you for reading.
I'll probably say that again in the next minute or so of reading, but it's important to me you know that up front.
This is my last column and I'm leaving. It's with a weighted-vest of hearts that I bid you all a farewell.
The last seven months have been some of the more newsworthy in the history of modern humanity and I can only hope the history books somehow include all the world's events while still focusing on the main story – my time at this paper as managing editor.
Of course, I'm kidding.
I spent my first 18 years on a farm in south central Nebraska. I spent the next several years running around the country only to inevitably anchor back in Nebraska. This state, and its neighborly inhabitants, have always and will always continue to hold a special place in my heart.
What pulled me away for a few years was opportunity. And excitement. A few of my columns have dealt with face coverings, kindness, going outside and even my affinity for hot sauces. Perhaps more than a goodbye, consider these jumbled words as a plea for opportunity.
Sometimes you have to seize it when it comes. Sometimes you have to create it on your own. Just don't be complacent about it. If an opportunity arises that can give you something you otherwise didn't have – go for it.
This pandemic has taken far more than it's given. It's taken employment, income, safety, health, relationships and lives. It's taken the worlds we've known for years and flipped them around. There was a time when I heard people talk about finding opportunity in a pandemic and I scoffed.
How could someone find opportunity in a time of so much unrest?
What I've realized is opportunity exists regardless of circumstances. Go after it. That thing you've been putting off doing – go for it.
And this last column is my final opportunity to speak directly to you, dear reader.
So I just want you to know I appreciate you reading. I truly, dearly appreciate your support for local news. Please, continue to support this paper. No other news source will ever care about your council meetings or pancake feeds the way the people who put together these pages do.
Thank you for the opportunity to serve you. Thank you to every other name etched into these pages for joining me in the quest to deliver news.
Archie says thank you too, but mostly for the treats any of you kind community members gave him after his relentless begging.
