Life Archives » Lynda Waddington

25Dec 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Holiday gifts for readers and researchers

Gazette Column

Gusts of sharp December wind remind newspaper folk everywhere that its time for a year-end review. I’ll play along, but with a gift-giving twist. Instead of reviewing my work, which is too often a cringe-worthy experience, I’ve instead been plowing through your email messages to me. Kind comments, some of which helped me through difficult moments, once again had my eyes filling. I stand in awe of your quick wit and your generous spirit. Some feedback was brutal, constructive or otherwise, yet the vast majority of dissenting views focused on my words and not me. It’s an exceptional gift that far too few writers can claim, and a testament to a widespread desire for more civility and thoughtful dialogue. Within the messages I also discovered a pattern of questions and…

23Nov 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Let’s write it out, aim for civility

Gazette Column

Civility. Whether you’re conservative or liberal, Republican or Democrat, you’ve no doubt heard grumblings about the lack of it lately. Maybe we should put some action behind our words. Attend local meetings and it isn’t long before the topic of civility arises. Many are worried about interacting with relatives who hold different opinions. Others are worried about the future, concerned their way of life is threatened. For all the wonders of our technological age, in this respect, computers and connectivity has worked against us. The easy road is to surround ourselves with similar viewpoints, ignoring or outright dismissing arguments from those with a different perspective. We don’t have to talk, don’t have to have discussions — at least not discussions that vary more than a few degrees from our own…

14Sep 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Lessons from the dinner line

Gazette Column

Sometimes we make things more difficult than they need to be. I was standing in line at a restaurant this week. In front of me was a man in an automated wheelchair, a urine collection bag at his side. Behind me was a woman in her mid-30s, her young son in tow. The boy was curious about the man, and especially interested in the urine bag. He first asked about it in a normal speaking voice and, after being shushed, engaged in whispered shouts much to the astonishment and — dare I type it? — delight of bystanders. More than once a “we’ll talk about it later” was uttered. As I stood and listened to the exchange, I watched the man in the wheelchair. His eyebrows raised, and then his…

16Jul 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Bucking against serenity

Gazette Column

My Mom displayed a copy of the Serenity Prayer prominently in our home. A Reader’s Digest Condensed Book turned religious knickknack, the volume had been glued open, sprayed gold and hodged-podged with fancy text of the prayer and related graphics. The book was partnered with a gold stand, and I remember the duo gracing several surfaces — a dresser top, a bookcase and the console television. I’m not sure how my Mom came to own it or what, if any, sentimental value she attached it. The latter is probably a good thing. Although the book is now tucked away somewhere in my house, I’d be hard-pressed to find it. Still, the prayer — “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things…

26Jun 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Standing in defiance of grief

Gazette Column

My hand skimmed the smooth top of the computer desk as my eyes flicked across framed photos on top of the hutch. I sighed in full understanding of the back- and heartbreaking work before our family. Only two days earlier my feet were buried in sand along the Atlantic shoreline, more than 1,300 miles away. I stood quietly as the tide came in, allowing the chilly water to climb mid-thigh before conceding defeat and backing away. Watching the waves, battered by the wind, jagged bits of shell and rock biting my bare feet, I was convinced nothing else could make me feel so small and insignificant. I was wrong. [caption id="attachment_1229" align="alignleft" width="640"] Waves roll in at Hampton Beach in Hampton, NH on June 7, 2017.[/caption] The call came while…

02Jan 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Offerings to the New Year pyre, 2016

Gazette Column

Next week, six months, a year or five years from now, will it matter? When I took my first journalism job and had difficulty deciding what to write about or lead with, my mother asked me that question. Even bedridden with bone cancer, she had a way of keeping her priorities straight, of separating the “littles” from the “biggies.” In retrospect, it probably also was her way of encouraging my continued presence in the world outside of her bedroom, effectively making sure her youngest child didn’t become her full-time caregiver. Throughout my life I’ve been handed various words of wisdom with a similar sentiment. “Forget everything that means nothing,” one of my first editors advised. My brother told me if I couldn’t change it, I’d best let it go. In…

26Dec 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Under the watchful eye of the ‘misfits’

Gazette Column

Replicas of the residents of the mythical Island of the Misfit Toys have graced a windowsill my home office for more than a decade. This year I feel especially aware of what they represent. I discovered the tiny statues shortly after moving to Iowa, shortly after I admitted to myself that I’d never felt more out of sync with the world around me. Readers who aren’t familiar with the Misfit Toys should click over to YouTube and search for clips from the 1964 stop motion holiday classic “Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” Since the hourlong special has been replayed during the holiday season each year since that time (with one major change, which we’ll get to in a minute), the film could very well be on your television this Christmas Day.…

18Sep 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Bring kids together on Friday night

Gazette Column

By my estimation, high school football games are the greatest student solidarity builders since elementary school. It’s one of the reasons I love them. I need to note up front that I grew up in the South, where football is practically a religion. I also exited high school at a time when graduation requirements didn’t regularly force students to choose between interests. For the student body at my school, Friday night football games were a little magical. It was the first time since elementary school when we all were able to sit down at the same table, so to speak. And, sure, a football game was played, but the game was only one piece of the attraction. Students who excelled in vocal music sang the national anthem, which was performed…

29Aug 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Appreciating the triangulation of Pokemon Go

Gazette Column

A mighty battle took place in uptown Marion a few nights ago. A local father and his two young sons stood at the edge of City Square Park, iPhones in hand. For this family, the visit was one of purpose and excitement. After playing the augmented reality game Pokemon Go for a couple of weeks, they had finally reached a high enough level to attempt takeover of a virtual gym and place their mark, however digital and temporary, on the local landscape. Their target was the Marion Heritage Center, controlled at that time by Team Valor, otherwise known as the “red” team. The boys and their father were Team Instinct, or the “yellow” team. I was walking loops around the park, catching wild pokemon and gathering supplies while trying to…

03May 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Transit blog, day one

Gazette Blog

Not off to a stellar start This Monday morning lived up to its bad reputation. And, no, it wasn’t completely the fault of Cedar Rapids’ public transit. Nonetheless, let’s start this off on a good note: I didn’t have to charter an ark or a speedboat to get to the bus stop. The rain finally agreed to a much-needed break, and I was crazy grateful for a blue sky and a few sunbeams. I had a simple agenda planned for the first day of my public transit experiment. I wanted to catch the bus in uptown Marion, ride to the transit hub in downtown Cedar Rapids and switch buses for another short ride to the bus stop about a block from The Gazette. Before anyone points this out, I’m perfectly…