The Emporia Gazette

May 28, 2012

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I DO NOT mean that these columns are funny. They usually are not. Nor do I mean that everyone has fun in reading them. I hope some of you do — or a least get some mild pleasure out of reading them. You would, if I had my way.

The main fun to which I refer comes to me. They are fun for me to write and even more fun when I get comments about them. It is that fun for me from your comments and responses that I thought I would tell you about.

The “If I had my way” title brings lots of my fun. That is because people I do not even know recognize me from my picture at the top of the column. Then they say something about having my way. I cannot begin to remember all of such experiences, but I would tell you a couple, if I had my way.

On a crummy day, one gentleman I met on the street said, “If I had my way, the weather would be lots better today.” At another time, a lovely lady on the street said, “Are you getting your way about things these days?” And I definitely recall one man saying, “If I had my way, you would keep writing those columns.” See how my title works for me? Makes me feel good. That is fun.

I often get comments at the monthly Retired Teachers luncheon. That is because they are on Friday and my column may have appeared just the evening before. At a recent meeting, Wilma Spencer and Norma Karhoff both stopped me and told me something nice about the previous night’s column. I did not make a note, so I have forgotten just what their comments were, but they were nice. Two or three others also made a brief comment at that meeting.

Then, another place I get comments is at the Presbyterian Manor. People often stop me and say something nice right after the column has appeared. One of my recent columns about microbes brought several fun comments from Susan Siepelmeier, who works that at the Manor. I had written that I had learned that women’s hands have more bacteria than men’s hands. Susan had much fun, several times, offering to shake my hand and kidding me about that.

It was much fun for me, too.

Speaking of the Manor reminds me of how this fun thing happened there. Ruth Thomsen, who formerly lived in the Burlington area and still gets the Coffey County Republican paper, brought me a page from that paper.

It contained an article about Hartford written by Eloise Hammen. Early in her article, she wrote, “Gee, we’re taking Mr. Peterson’s advice (he writes an article “If I had my way”). Later in her article, she wrote, “What would the old Emporia State professor say; you need to diet, If I had my way!!!” It is fun to see my name and writing in other people’s words. It would happen often, if I had my way.

And many others at the Manor comment about my trivial writings, too. Joan Gatewood gave me much information about farmers and farming. I wrote about it. The evening it appeared, she told me she had already had three phone calls about it. It is much fun for me to get all these comments from the Manor folks.

I wrote a column about the Lincoln Highway. That brought a letter from Dean Gladow, of here in Emporia. His daughter, Deborah, lives in DeKalb, Ill., and teaches in Malta. I had mentioned both in my column, so that brought e-mail exchanges between father and daughter. Deborah travels the Lincoln Highway every day as she goes to Malta to teach.

Mildred Caldwell, retired teacher here in Emporia, has given me much information about communities and other things. Consequently, I have mentioned her in several past columns. Our paths crossed recently and she told me this story.

She had a letter from a longtime friend in El Dorado, a fellow she used to teach with in Rosalia. He said he had seen her name several times in The Emporia Gazette. Hence, she must be getting famous in Emporia. That was fun for both Mildred and me.

A greeting card came from Loren Johnson of Long Beach, Calif. He used to live in Burlington and still gets The Gazette. Loren had written much on the card. And even on the envelope. His address sticker on the envelope had a picture of the big arch in Arches National Park in Utah. Below it, he had written that he had been there twice and would go again “if I had my way.”

Inside the card, he had put another address sticker. It was placed slightly crooked. Beside it, he had written, “If I had my way, I would-a-put the sticker right.” So, you see, my “If I had my way” does get around.

Back in July, I wrote how Imo McCosh, of here in Emporia, had told me about the Grafensteen Ranch. Later, in an October column, Betty Rathke told me it was Grafenstein, not Grafensteen. Then, there came a note from Imo in which she said she had misspelled it because she had never seen it written, only her father speaking it. So goes our dialogue in these columns. Fun!

There, then, I have told you of some of the fun things I get from these trivial columns. I shall try to keep on writing them, if you keep making them fun. You would, if I had my way.