LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER
Looking for Potential in 2022
PHOTO BY TERENCE DUFFY
Ellen Goodman , the syndicated columnist who won a Pulitzer Prize 42 years ago ( and at 80 , is still writing ) knew something about new beginnings . “ We spend January 1st walking through our lives , room by room , drawing up a list of work to be done , cracks to be patched ,” she wrote more than a decade ago . " Maybe this year , to balance the list , we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives … not looking for flaws , but for potential .”
Few of us are having a difficult time saying goodbye to 2021 , which will be missed about as much as 2020 was . This past year we saw what we hoped was the definitive departure of the pandemic , only to see it reemerge . Ugh ! The challenges we ’ ve all faced in our businesses and personal lives have strengthened us and prepared us for whatever uncertainties are waiting in the wings .
Now that we know the various steps we can take to help protect ourselves and others , I ’ m glad to say we ’ re now seeing both quiet and grand re-openings . People are once again going out to dinner , attending plays , ballets , lectures and concerts , attending sports events and going to the movies . We are refusing to be beaten , looking instead , as Ellen Goodman says , for potential .
I personally enjoy the new year much more than I do the year-end holiday season , which is riddled with stress . The new year can be a time of new beginnings , new friendships and new opportunities . It can be a time to wipe the slate clean , start again and re-declare our values .
For instance , the things that are most valued to me are my faith , my family , my health and my work . This list has guided me from a very young age and it ' s something I think will never go out of date .
Every time we ’ ve survived a tough time — a devastating recession , a deadly pandemic , spiraling inflation , up-anddown employment cycles — someone rushes to declare that henceforth we ’ ll all be living in a New Normal . But if you ’ ve lived long enough to see how oceans , hemlines and economies rise and fall , this is ridiculous . Setbacks , disappointments and even catastrophic illness are normal . They ’ re part of life . And even if they change us , they ’ re changing us only in the moment . There ’ s no need for them to change who we fundamentally are . My own list isn ’ t going to change .
Shortly before 2021 drew to a close , several members of the Comstock ’ s staff and four generations of my family gathered at Cal Expo for the final season game of the Sacramento Republic FC . My four-generation family cheering section included my mom ( who just turned 101 years old ); my talented and beautiful daughter , Carmel ; her husband , Tim ; and one of my two grandchildren — 13-year-old Jack ( 16-year-old Bella was frolicking elsewhere that evening ). As I looked at them , I felt a satisfying mixture of love , pride and even certainty : certainty that no matter what the future holds for all of us , here we were , sitting together , united by blood and human warmth . I remember and value so much a similar photograph taken when Carmel was born that included my grandmother in a four-generation shot . The game ended with a tie on that special night , but we all won simply by being together , snuggled together in the chill and sharing a bag of kettle corn .
As we enter 2022 , I think we all need to consider how truly blessed we are . I know I ’ ve been blessed in countless ways that would fill a book were I to start listing them . Whenever you have a feeling of sadness , I encourage you to start writing a list of blessings you ’ ve had in your life and you ’ ll be amazed at the transformation in your mood . Hold on to that list for the next time you need a pick-me-up !
One of my many blessings is that in July , this magazine will celebrate 33 years of not just great business journalism , and lots of industry awards , but also true storytelling . Not bad for a company that started on zero investment capital , and no bank loan for its first 5 years . Talk about a blessing !! And I give all the credit to the man upstairs . It ’ s well known that when we give to a cause or buy a product , we ’ re usually more inclined to give to , or buy from , people who share their stories . People are who and what make the world go ‘ round and sometimes even make our hearts sing . This is why we ’ ve always tried to maintain a good balance of companies , people , regional issues and compassion in our stories . We enjoy introducing you to the people behind so many of our region ’ s success stories — they ’ re the people who are making things happen in our wonderful Capital Region .
My sincere wish for 2022 is that we ’ ll approach it with grace and consider it normal . Few things in life remain exactly the same , and this is all to the good : It adds color to our days and a glow to our dreams .
I hope to see you at events throughout the region and throughout the year . Let ’ s walk through those rooms of our lives with hope and promise . Happy , happy New Year !
Winnie Comstock-Carlson President and Publisher
January 2022 | comstocksmag . com 17