This past weekend, thanks to my friend Loretta Collins, I sequestered myself in a quiet little cabin, to get away.
I was tired, ill and sad and getting away from everything was the answer.
The past week was a tough one. Long hours, little sleep and a nagging little monster in my head meant little rest.
Then came the claims of bias and slanted journalism. The very thing that I have spent close to 15 years doing in Bowie County was questioned. Credibility earned over all those years of being at countless ballgames, meetings, fundraisers and the thousands of pictures of school children, pageant queens and grand openings was all seemingly forgotten, because I did my job.
What we do here at the Tribune is not always easy. We live here, shop at the same stores, go to the same churches, and our kids go to the same schools.
And sometimes, we have to write stories that are not going to be well received by everyone.
We do this not for a lot of money, or fame, or even to be loved by all. We do it because of a belief that what we do, means something.
Years ago, I worked for the same company as Dale Hansen. Hansen was already a legend then, even more so now.
Recently he stood and defended what it is we do, for all of us.
He said, “We tell the truth. We report the facts and we expose the lies by speaking truth to power...The First Amendment, freedom of the press, might be the greatest use of pen and paper ever.”
I could not agree more.
