I was visiting the Pioneer Museum here in Flagstaff on Saturday and discovered that someone had left a stack of copies of something that newscaster Paul Harvey wrote. This isn’t about business but isn’t business about life? I don’t think any of us really want to go back to the good old days (which weren’t always so good), but it sometimes helps today if we remember yesterday.
Here are some excerpts from what he wrote:
“What’s mainly wrong with society today is that too many Dirt Roads have been paved. . . People that live at the end of dirt roads learn early on that life is a bumpy ride. That it can jar you right down to your teeth sometimes, but it’s worth it, if at the end is home, a loving spouse, happy kids and a dog.
There was less crime in our streets before they were paved. Criminals didn’t walk two dusty miles to rob or rape if they knew they’d be welcomed by five barking dogs and a double barrel shotgun.
Our values were better when our roads were worse. Dirt roads taught patience. Dirt roads were environmentally friendly. You didn’t hop in your car for a quart of milk. You walked to the barn for your milk. For your mail, you walked to the mail box.
At the end of Dirt Roads, you soon learned that bad words tasted like soap. Most paved roads lead to trouble. Dirt Roads more likely lead to a fishing creek or a swimming hole. At the end of a Dirt Road, the only time we even locked our car was in August because if we didn’t some neighbor would fill it with too much zucchini.