At Your Service by Maggie Inge

When history is made, as is occurring this week, it always marks a new beginning. After such precipitous events, our picture of who we are is changed and the vision of what we might be and accomplish expands to include new possibilities. To paraphrase from one such event: what is a single step for one is a leap for us all.

It has been almost two years in the making and taken us on a journey that will fill pages in future history books. The long campaign will end when the presidential election is decided next week.

During the Fleischmanns First Floor’s house tour on Sunday, someone lamented about the quality of workmanship the once prevailed in the region, as evidenced by the elegant and elaborate woodwork on display. A gentleman quickly responded, “You can still find people to do that quality of work here.” Around the room, heads nodded; but it wasn’t clear on which opinion there was agreement.
In the brief conversation that ensued, I made my own observation. The man defending the area’s workforce was impeccably dressed and had an air of perfection about him. He appeared to be the kind of person who would never settle for less than the best and I could not imagine working for him and delivering anything that was substandard.

Approaching the door, I could see through the window and tell from the look on the face of the man behind the counter that this was the place I had heard about. The wares being sold were a perfect representation of the kinds of goods once sold everywhere: bolts of fabric lined up like soldiers against the wall and everything else was positioned for easy viewing. Despite the chill in the air and the frost on the economy, the man’s face was the picture of calm, secured in place by a smile.

When I logged on to file the column that I had written for this week, I received the disturbing news that Congress did not pass what is commonly referred to as the “bail out bill.” While I know more than many about the workings of Wall Street, everything I know is not enough to understand the complexities of the need for this legislation. So, I do not have an opinion on whether it is the right or wrong thing for our government to do.