I’m a Lucky Man!
I’ve reached the ripe young age of a full and exciting 90 years of living. I have always decided what I wanted to do with my life rather than not being in control of it. Now I enjoy the luxury of living it again through my two talented kids. They are sharing similar experiences with me, and that triggers extremely fond memories.
Tara, my daughter, is an expert in graphic design. You know that I know nothing about the subject. I do know that she was an outstanding member of an exceptionally talented high school art class. She taught computer skills to professors when she was an undergraduate in college. After graduation, her graphic design skills were in such demand and she was so good that she never had trouble landing good jobs and getting loads of promotions. She educated many, many employees on the skills of graphic design and web development. Now she finds herself in positions of leadership, a field in which she had no formal training. She currently has a high position in marketing operations for a Fortune 500 company.
This is where Daddy comes in. She asks me about my lifelong experiences of leadership. Initially, I just felt my way through them, as she did hers, but I wrote about them in my book and can now articulate my leadership principles to her. Our discussions lend themselves to fond memories of my own leadership roles.
Along comes my strong-as-a-bull son Kyle. He learned to ski and snowboard as a little tyke. He loves it so much he rented a mountain home for the 2022–2023 season in Vermont, near Mount Snow, where I was on the ski patrol. The view of the mountain is so beautiful. You can see the expert trail of the north face and the south side at the same time. Kyle is going to be a ski patroller too.
Kyle is so good as a skier/snowboarder that he can film as he skis. He texts the videos and photos to Mary Ellen and me. We can see five-year-old granddaughter Scarlett, aka Big Trish, snowboarding and hear her mother, Tara, blowing out her lungs with words of encouragement. Seven-year-old granddaughter Liana, aka Tuna Surprise, is so full of life. We can see her snowboarding down the Discovery run trying to master a right turn and hear her bellow with joy, “I made it,” as she executed a right turn for the first time. (For those of you who aren’t snowboarders, it’s easier to master turning to turn to one side; it’s hanging a snowboard turn the opposite side that’s tough because you have to rewire your brain.)
Seven-year-old Conrad, aka Gummy Bear, is quite good as a boarder but complained to his mother, “Why would you ask me to come out to this frozen wasteland?” His mother and I have no clue as to when or where he acquired that language.
Ten-year-old Liam, aka Rocky, has so much pent-up energy I’d think he’d prefer snowboarding to staying at the mountain house coding on his computer. He boards well, but maybe he codes even better.
I get a big kick out of seeing my kids and hearing Kyle talk Tara into skiing the treacherous mogul field of the Uncles trail. In the video he sent us, Kyle’s under-the-cuff chuckle is distinctly heard in the background.
I marvel at the gracefulness of Kyla, aka Love Love, Tara, and Kyle as they glide down the various ski trails. I skied more like a bull in a china closet.
Photos of trails, buildings, old buddies, skiing conditions, and lifts all allow me to be there many more times, reliving those times in my own life.
Those memories and videos are so special. I get such a charge out of seeing them enjoy themselves on the mountain. It is also gratifying that my kids reach out to me with questions about such things as ski patrolling and leadership. Mary Ellen and I must have done something right.
Book Update
When is it coming?! Soon. Yes, I know you’ve heard this many times over, but spring is arriving in fits and starts, mirroring the book during the printing/publication process.
If you’ve been lucky, you’ve had a glance at the proof copy. “Soon” the proof ill be replaced with the real deal. We look forward to announcing launch events where you can meet Marty and get your own signed copy!
—Cathy Kreyche
