Columnist bids farewell

Goodbye, so long, farewell, adieu and thank you, until we meet again.

It has been an adventure these last few years, but everything must end. This is my final column.

I have been struggling to write a column that is relevant for some time now. My goal has always been to provide a brief respite from all the bad news that bombards us everyday. Then when I write something that I think you will find interesting, my laptop disagrees and promptly tosses it out, omits a couple of paragraphs or tells me the column has been sent when it hasn’t.

As I have said before, I write this column for many reasons. I write to the girl I used to be to show her that her current reality is not necessarily her future. I want her to know that she can find a spouse who is kind and doesn’t yell, fight or do any of the other things that were normal way back when.

I write to tell her that attention is not a bad thing. When I first began this column, I believed that all attention was bad. Positive attention was just a ruse and would eventually result in something bad happening.

I write to all those whose reality is a bit rocky. I want them to know that their future is not necessarily the same as their past.

I hadn’t been writing long when I was sitting on my porch, taking a break from yard work. I heard a car come to a screeching halt, an older woman got out and ran up to me without even shutting her door. I walked out to meet her and she threw her arms around me and asked if I was the one who wrote for the paper. Scared the daylights out of me. She later became a pen pal and would write to me about her cats. She died quite awhile ago but she still lives in my heart.

Then there were the people who would follow me at Walmart. I have had many people look at me and then keep on shopping. At some point they would ask me if I was the one who wrote for the paper.

There are lots of people who write for the paper. When I would say that I did a weekly column most of them would compliment me or suggest that I write about their favorite subject.

Then there were the cards and letters. They would always arrive when I needed encouragement. Sometimes those short notes were all it took to keep me going. Lastly, I want to thank J.S. for giving me my first hate mail. I was tickled pink at the note telling me to go back where I came from.

Surprised? My words resonated with him enough that he went to all the trouble of getting a card, writing his own words, putting a stamp on it and mailing it to the paper to pass on to me. And by the way, my name is Diana with an A, not Diane with an E.

My readers have gotten me through two bouts of breast cancer, the birth of three grandchildren, my husband’s new knees, and the death of my mom.

I appreciate all of you. May you have skies of blue and people who love you. Until we meet again, thank you from the bottom of my heart.