Goodbye's can be tough and I've had a week of them.
Today was my final day as editor of Hawke's Bay Today and saying farewell to numerous people in the community really gives you cause for reflection.
I have to conclude that the opportunity to edit Hawke's Bay Today has been one of the best things to happen to me. And I'm not talking only in a professional or career sense, although it has been beneficial in that respect, of course.
But what really defines my experience of living in Hawke's Bay is the people and the place. From high-achieving professionals to the most humble of readers of our newspaper, the people of Hawke's Bay are an amazing lot. Welcoming, down to earth, quick to laugh, caring and resilient, Hawke's Bay-ites are well aware they are privileged to live in one of the finest regions of New Zealand. They know what is great about the Bay but they are also increasingly concerned about and paying attention to aspects that need fixing (for nowhere is perfect) - whether they be social, environmental or economic/employment issues.
It is heartening to see some of the debate and initiatives under way to build a better Hawke's Bay, for I am sure we now well and truly realise that the answers must come from within. But these are worthy challenges for people possessed of the same steely spirit that saw this place through the disastrous earthquake of 1931 and the body blows of the closures of Tomoana and Whakatu.
