Ann Richmond (far right) birds farewell to BIRD TALK editors past and present: (left to right) Melissa Kauffman, Marylou Zarbock, Jessica Pineda, Anastasia Thrift |
“I wanted a perfect ending,” stated the late comedienne Gilda Radner, “Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity.”
Radner passed away from ovarian cancer in 1989. And even though she was a dog lover, not a bird lover, we won’t hold that against her because ... well, that woman was funny. She really made us laugh even when she was going through her own highs and lows.
Saying goodbye is the horrible low that comes hand-in-hand with the wonderful high of saying hello. We may hate goodbyes (personally I refuse to say them), but without them we can’t say hello to all the wonderful, amazing companions and friends who walk — or fly — along us, even if for just for a short time, on our life path.
Ann Richmond is one such friend, who has been on the BIRD TALK team for the past 10 years as our production coordinator. Ann retired this month to tackle the next part of her journey. We wish her the best and BIRD TALK has been better for her having been a part of it.
This issue also includes a touching farewell from columnist Chris Davis to her beloved blue-and-gold macaw Babydoll. (I cried when I read it.) We are all better for Baby’s contributions to Chris’s life and her writings.
Since I don’t believe in goodbyes, I’ll end this column with one more quote, from American author Richard Bach. “Don’t be dismayed by goodbyes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends."
**For more, pick up the August 2010 issue of BIRD TALK**
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