As Time Goes By With Rich O'Brian: A Great Honor

To be accorded the honor of serving this part of Colorado by way of a column such as this one, gives to me an opportunity to attempt to write creatively.

I walked into the office of the publisher of Kiowa County Independent. My wife, Dianne, and I had only recently moved to Eads. We brought with us my background in a rather extensive experience in media including print, radio and television.

Upon meeting Publisher Betsy Barnett, I offered my voluntary skills to her and to the publication of the newspaper. Betsy graciously invited me to present copy for publication. By the way, Ms. Barnett has given me absolute freedom in choosing the topics for my column which I truly appreciate.

Sometime ago before Dianne and I became residents of Southern Colorado, I had published weekly newspapers in Big Sky and West Yellowstone, Montana. “Back at the ranch,” so to speak.

After a period of time the Independent grew and brought on a full-time Editor by the name of Raina Lucero. Raina also writes a large amount of the paper along with Publisher Betsy Barnett.

In my opinion, small communities such as ours profit by having many of the “extra” amenities the more heavily populated communities have.

The following is a kind of a postscript based on a turn-of-events in the lives of Dianne and me that took place over the past weekend. I’ll make it brief.

I was having difficulty breathing and, thanks to Dianne and our great medical community, I was put on oxygen that has been necessary to keep me functioning.

So, it appears that I am joining the multitudes of people who are blessed to be kept alive by the use of additional oxygen.

When I was a child, my parents taught me this little prayer:

God is great—
God is good.
Let us thank Him
for our food.
Amen.

We should all be so humble and so grateful.