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WHY WE STAY: Why Gloria loves their small town

Guest Writer












By Gloria Gaither

© Gloria Gaither.

All rights reserved.


We recently attended the life-celebration of a long-term friend, our neighbor and our dentist.  He wasn’t just a dentist, but an exceptional, innovative dentist who used the most up-to-date equipment and methods.  He belonged to several state and national dental associations and organizations, including membership in the Pierre Fauchard Academy, whose membership is by invitation only and

whose purpose is to select outstanding leadership in the various fields of dentistry who exhibit excellence, integrity, and ethical practice within and outside of their professional arena of service.


Dr. David Steele began his life in our town as a Methodist preacher’s son. As a young boy he delivered newspaper to our community, but soon developed a love for photography.  By the time he was in high school, he had a thriving business taking the pictures of his fellow students for special honors, sports events, and graduations.


After graduation he headed for college, then on to pursue his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree and to

start his 47 years baskets, and light-encircled Christmas stars, everyone who paid tribute gave his family the assurance that nothing was forgotten. We had kept every smile he ever gave us, not only

on our faces but in our hearts. It was also obvious that for a person to give forty-seven years to one

profession in one place, he had more than an occupation; he had to have had a calling.


“Why do you and Bill stay in that little town?” we are often asked. “Why do you live in the house you built 57 years ago when you were teaching at the high school two blocks away?” Why do we still live where some people still call Bill “Billy Jim” and where we know who sells the best eggs from chickens they raise in their back yards?


I guess we stay here because if a song doesn’t ring true at the Bakery, it probably won’t be sung around the world.  We stay because in a town like this we have to create our own magic out of

regular things on regular days.  We stay because we are the keepers of each other’s memories, and

we have made a silent pledge to show up on some dark day to remind each other that the light we shine just might lead someone home. 


Gloria Gaither is a longtime Gospel singer, songwriter and poet who lives in Alexandria, Indiana. Find more of her writings at www.lovesongtomylife.com/blog

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