Betsy,
Wow! Wishing you the best birthday ever as you turn 90. I wish you many happy returns.
On a personal note, I would like you to know what a pleasure it was to work with you in the “NEXUS Years”! You taught me so much and provided so much help to me and to the group. You were my work colleague and my friend. I treasure them both, but especially the friendship!
May you have a special day in celebration of such a landmark.
With love,
Ray Dillard
Business Manager – NEXUS
From Briana:
“I remember staying overnight at BG and Papa’s house New Year’s Eve. We had BGs famous chili for dinner. We got to stay up to watch the ball drop at Times Square. I specifically remember at least one time watching this on a little TV in the kitchen at the Wayland house. What I remember most about breakfast on New Year’s morning was papa’s homemade orange juice.”
Love,
Briana
Mom:
As the one appointed to receive all of these wondrously loving cards and emails, I’ve been reading each as it comes in and saying “YES! I agree!” You have done so much to enrich the lives of so many. I could speak endlessly about that. But one thing I want to thank you for is for all the great quotes! Some are just funny, some wise, some commonsense. Here are just a few:
“You’re not TRYING to find it.” — I think I first heard it at age 10 when looking for scissors in the “messy drawer” in the kitchen.
“Food sure tastes good when you’re hungry.”
“If you want to meet someone, go to church.” I didn’t take that to mean church specifically, but a group that meets regularly with some purpose.
Not exactly quotes, but two names that you and Dad must have been delighted with — but not us kids! First was the “Magpie Box” — where you told us of this bird that would collect things that were left lying around. If we wanted to retrieve an item from the Magpie Box, we had to pay 5 cents! And who could forget the dreaded “Read it and weep chart” which listed who was to receive what terrible torture on Saturday morning, like “Sweep the garage – Annie, Mop the kitchen floor – Fred, Empty the trash – Ellen, Vacuum rooms – Paul”
“Did they abuse you? Did they feed you? Did they put a roof over your head? … Well then stop complaining.” said to a friend who had issues with his parents.
When you were managing my career:
“He needs a shot of Vitamin B12” referring to a fellow we worked with on recording projects, who was maddeningly un-energetic.
I remember you noting the “value of distraction” — and seeing it in action. A bunch of us were stuck in some intractable disagreement where there seemed to be no solution, and somehow you got us talking about something unrelated and pretty soon, people forgot what they were upset about.
“Fame is over-rated.”
Once when you saw me struggling with what I thought were important details of some PR campaign or mass letter or something, you advised me not to get too bogged down. “After all: No one’s listening.” That was liberating.
Also liberating was something you said just last year. I called for advice (which I do often) — some kind of quandary. You said “Just realize that whatever you choose to do, you’ll regret it.”
Finally, I just want to say that if you happened to be the president of a major corporation, you would be hugely successful. I think your intelligence, energy, creativity, memory, stick-to-it-iveness, ability to multi-task never found their way to the Fortune 500 because you have always chosen activities based on artistic or humanistic merit or because you want to be helpful to the people you know and love.
Fred