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SubTitle: Does Anyone Really Know?
Posted by: rs on 12/20/1997@13:03hrs:
I have an older friend, a woman in her eighties, now widowed, who came out here to San Francisco from the Greater New York Area in the mid-fifties, to work for the newspaper guild. Most of her friends of her own era have passed away, and she lives alone, self-sufficient, active in elderly issues, and seen to by younger friends. In a moment of serious conversation she mentioned something that stuck with me and seems relevant to post here. Julia (her name) told me that what bothers her most is that none of her new friends really knows who she is. By this she means her story, what it was like growing up back East, coming out here, working for the newspaper guild, the issues of the days long ago that she had a role in, the friends she had then, etc., etc.
I suspect there's an element of this in these postings, or, more to the point, of those of us who post. We're mostly all long gone from SI and this is a way of saying who we are, whether anyone is interested or not. When I meet people, one of the things I tell about myself is that I'm from SI, particularly if my new friend or acquaintance is from the NY area. At least it gives them a peg on which to hang me. I don't do it for the cachet attached to SI. If I wanted cachet, what would I have to tell them? Four Corners? Wagner? Not this time around.
Do your new friends really know who you are? -r