Thank you Ellen Goodman

I have been a reader of Ellen Goodman for years.  Her perspective resonates with me and her columns always make me think.  She recently announced her retirement from the Boston Globe and I am going to miss her words.  In fact, I wrote her an email to tell her just that.

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Since Ellen is experiencing what so many baby boomers will be experiencing, she is trying to process like the rest of us what this all means.  Now what?

Fortunately for Ellen, she can continue to write in all kinds of formats now with on-line or write more books.  Hey, Peter Drucker was writing and people were seeking out his sage-like wisdom until his death at age 95!  Writing is a healthy way to process what we are thinking and feeling and it leaves a wonderful legacy.  It is a perfect way to share our wisdom whether it is in the form of formal writing or journaling.  With self-publishing, we can all publish what we want others to read for years to come.

In Ellen's last column, she quoted words by a columnist 30 years her junior at her farewell lunch that I thought were so moving:

"There's a trick to the Graceful Exit.  it begins with the vision to recognize when a job, a life stage, a relationship is over--and to let go.  It means leaving what's over without denying its validity or its past importance in our lives.

"It involves a sense of future, a belief that every exit line is an entry, that we are moving on rather than out."

Ellen said that it was odd listening to these remarks remembering that years ago she had said, "The trick of retiring well may be the trick of living well."

The columnist continued:

"It's hard to recognize that life isn't a holding action, but a process.  It's hard to learn that we don't leave the best parts of ourselves behind, back in the dugout or the office.  We own what we learned back there.  The experiences and the growth are grafted onto our lives.  And when we exit, we can take ourselves along--quite gracefully."

The Graceful Exit is just another door to moving on and taking what we know and love to do to new audiences.  I try to remember Richard Leider's mantra:  "Meaning trumps money and significance trumps success."

I look forward to reading what Ellen writes wherever she writes.  My hope is that she continues to share her wisdom with us.  Until then, I will miss her.  Thank you Ellen Goodman.

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