"Things happen for a reason" not just cliche

“Everything happens for a reason.” I must say that phrase brings out the cynic in me.

When fate deals an undesirable hand, that’s the last thing you want to hear. Years later,
you wind up in a better place and you understand the reasons for your previously
undesired fate. In August 2008, I traveled back to Lincoln, NE, for the first game of the
season as my alma mater (University of Nebraska) ushered in the Bo Pelini era against
Western Michigan. I was a 36-year old first-time father as my wife and I were expecting
twins to enter the world two months later. At the time, our oldest child was 17 months old.

My thinking at the time was that I might not have a chance to do this for a while, to visit
the place where I earned my Bachelor of Arts in journalism. Like most students back then,
I had dreams of being either on network television or being a beat writer for a metro
newspaper covering college or pro sports. Neither one of those dreams came true but such
does not affect how I view the outcome of my past career/current hobby. Instead, I wound
up being a sports reporter for 18 years (10 with the St. Helena Star and Weekly Calistogan).
If you would have asked me in 1997, I would have considered my career unfulfilled. As I
was living that life in real time, however, I felt fulfilled in ways I never imagined.

So I decided to reach out to the University’s journalism alumni magazine for a feature
story. I let the editor know that I was not doing this for selfish reasons. My purpose stemmed
from the fact that I know what it’s like being 21-years old, being starry-eyed in my dreams. I
wanted my story to deliver the message that there is an entirely different world that they do
not see now but will appreciate later. I really felt that if my career path story could reach
only a few youngsters, I would feel better.

It was also a chance for me to give thanks to the professors I had such as Rick Alloway and
Jerry Renaud to name a few. Though my degree was in broadcasting, I decided to practice
the written word in gaining experience as a sports reporter with the university’s newspaper,
the Daily Nebraskan. I did that in conjunction with being a production assistant and
occasional on-air talent for Broadcast House, which had three radio stations.

Though I left the newspaper industry in December 2014, I think about how my journalism
career path turned. In a sense, I appreciate the journey more than the destination. In 2001,
I was one of five finalists for a sports reporter job at the Contra Costa Times. The fact that
I knew a few people at that newspaper, I felt confident I would get the job. Then, I picked up
the phone only to discover that I was not hired. I was greatly disappointed.

Long story short, I went on to work for a startup internet news service (GetLocalNews.com)
based out of Benicia, CA. The organization covered Benicia as well as Vallejo. Two years
later, the company folded and did a Florida Marlins like staff-wide layoff.

After freelancing for eight months, I landed with Napa Valley Publishing as a sports reporter
for the St. Helena Star and Weekly Calistogan, where I remained for nearly 11 years before
changing careers.

Community journalism was the last thing I envisioned doing when I was a 21-year old kid in
college but I soon discovered many blessings. For years, small newspapers were a starting
point for a career. It was a place where you labored in the vines before moving on to bigger
news organizations.

As big newspapers began cutting from staffs more massively with each passing year, I
became thankful that I never reached the Contra Costa Times or any other metro newspaper.
Though the massive cuts have trickled down to the smaller, community newspapers, at the
time such was not as prevalent because such organizations offered something unique like
local news with more authenticity.

There were pitfalls such as hypersensitive parents to name one but I found the relationship
with coaches, administrators, etc. to be more of a partnership. That is not to suggest that the
relationships would not have stumbling blocks but it is more comforting for a coach to talk to
a reporter one-on-one rather than press conferences you see at the college and professional
level that resemble a state of the union address.

Unlike that level where you have public relations and sports information staffs, you have to
nurture relationships much more. Translation, you can’t cover the St. Helena Saints like the
New Orleans saints or the Calistoga Wildcats like the Kentucky Wildcats. The approach you
take is simple, celebrate success without unprofessionally fawning and report failures with
sensitivity because they are kids. High school is the pinnacle for most of their competitive
athletic endeavors.

The responsibilities I had were vast because they were not limited to writing stories and
thinking of fresh ways to tell them. The job also involved taking photos and paying out pages.
The multitasking was not easy because you always felt like you were sacrificing quality but
on the other hand, I liked it because I felt like I had control.

Being a small town sports reporter carried that “big fish, small pond” vibe. The relationships
could get claustrophobic at times and there were people you had to keep at arm's length.
The relationships, however, turned into friendships, not in the sense of doing things together
socially but when you talk to them, they feel like friends.

I guess things do happen for a reason.