One of the things I loved most about life as a newspaper and radio journo was the surprise element.
The adrenalin-pumping anticipation of not knowing what the day might bring, where the next story might lead and how it would change your life.
When parenthood, and the needs of three small children born in quick succession necessitated a change in career to the more ‘family-friendly’ freelance writing and public relations, I feared losing that buzz.
I questioned whether it could fuel my addiction for that thrill of the chase.
As a journo, the stories you cover stay with you forever. Some are good, and some are horrendously bad.
Ones like the horrific car crash I covered as 21-year-old cadet, that spared the life of a mother, but claimed those of her six-month-old baby, two small children and partner. My photographer and I were first on the scene and I’ll never erase that image of the occupied baby capsule on the side of the road and the car’s shattered front windscreen through which it had flown.
There was also the story of the brainless young country boys who dug up the corpse of a recently buried 95-year-old great grandmother and cut off her hands in a vile and senseless act of boredom.
Covering the court round revealed depressing stories too numerous to count. The sickening child sex offender who broke into the homes of his young victims at night and performed his hideous acts by the light of a candle he carried; the jealous lover who set fire to the home of his ex-girlfriend and partner and left them burn to their deaths; and the repeat drug trafficking mother of eight standing in the dock before the magistrate, time and time again, while her poor babies watched on – those early learned behaviours setting them up for a life cycle of similar tragedy.
In the land of freelancing and PR, there is still a buzz – you never know what the universe might throw at you next. But for me, there is one glaring difference – it’s a happy buzz.
We get to tell the good news stories. We get to talk about the joyful stuff.
Don’t get me wrong – I got to do a bit of that during my time working in the print and broadcast media, but it was miniscule compared to the tales of sadness.
These days I get to write about the light-workers – the miracle-minded folk out there working to change the world for the better. And it’s a good fit for me. It feels right.
Take today for example. This morning we put the final touches to 4000 words of fresh new website content spruiking the virtues of a dynamic, trailblazing organisation in town, and this afternoon we traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah (virtually of course) to chat with an Aussie manufacturer making his mark globally.
That was today – working from home in beautiful EM.
Tomorrow – well who knows?
But one thing I am sure of, is that each new day spreading The Splendid Word love brings with it extraordinary adventure and an exhilarating buzz.
For all the right reasons.
Xx Lee
