I took this title from a wonderful book by Carl Jung.
The explosion of love and friendship shown towards a fellow Taylor Allderdice High School graduate upon leaving her position at KDKA commands my attention. As a writer and as a woman who has been ruled by restlessness, I can only reflect upon how it must be…to root yourself in the city in which you were born, aim at a particular goal, work hard to get there, and plant yourself. That didn’t happen to me until the year 2001, when I was 51.
Actually, I did accomplish what I wanted; I’m not complaining. However, having worked in various places and performed a multitude of varying duties, I know what office politics are all about. To emerge at this point in life both unscathed and firmly rooted, gaining accolades from hundreds of people…this is something I deeply admire.
When I was going to Pittsburgh a lot, while my mother was still alive, I used to stand outside the main branch of the Carnegie Library and dream and reflect; what would my life have been if I stayed in the city I love and got a degree in Library Science, then worked for the place I also loved? I think everybody gets wrapped up in these fantasy questions.
It’s not a morbid thing to do–to sit and look back and remember. It’s probably a mistake to do it too much, too often. When I gaze at the photo above–of Pittsburgh and the Point–I think that I left my heart there. It did feel like that for a while but my heart got transferred to this place just outside of Bloomsburg, PA.
lgmwriting 