PUBLISHER’S DESK: THAT RAINBOW
Did that really just happen?
That was the thought that crossed my mind as my eyelids lifted at 6:45 a.m. Tuesday after a late night of work. And I wasn’t thinking explicitly about the unanimous, game-changing vote of the Freeman Public School Board to welcome Freeman Academy students into the Flyers’ athletic fold for at least next school year. Rather, my thoughts went to an existential by-product of the situation that took my breath away Monday night and has provided me with ethereal re-visitations ever since.
That rainbow.
A quick background. Last Thursday night, April 17, I texted members of the Freeman Public School Board the following:
Hello board. I moved back to Freeman 25 years ago and, ever since, have advocated for an all-Freeman sports cooperative in the interest of community unity. With the news today, that Freeman Public will remain Class B next year with an option to get out of the arrangement should the new ADM come in above 90, it is my hope that you will extend a hand of grace and friendship to another school that only wants a place for their students to play.
I’m writing this, not as a journalist, but a parent, taxpayer and advocate for this community. The five of you hold the power to unite this town like never before — literally. It is my sincere hope that you vote in favor of accepting Freeman Academy’s proposal Monday night, and that it be unanimous. What a gesture that would be and a wonderful way to bring some positivity at the end of a challenging few weeks.
Among those from whom I heard back was board president Emily Andersen, who wrote this:
“Seems like we have an opportunity to see a rainbow after the storm!”
This was Friday morning.
Fast-forward to Monday night, April 21, the night that the board was to meet at 8 p.m. in special session for the vote. I was returning from a baseball game in Parkston that evening and noticing the strange weather — a mix of rain, dark clouds and sunshine. And then, after arriving at home and getting ready to head to the meeting, I saw it: one of the most vibrant and spectacular rainbows I have ever seen. Its arch perfectly spanned the eastern sky, with a faint double set of colors visible, as well. It was 20 minutes before the meeting.
Hope washed over me. My eyes watered. And I felt a natural high as the meeting began, right on schedule. Nine minutes later it was over. The deal was done. The all-Freeman co-op was in place. But it wasn’t until I was walking out alongside Andersen that I was reminded of her text, and then it really hit me.
“Seems like we have an opportunity to see a rainbow after the storm!”
Even now, as I write, I get emotional thinking about it. Coincidence? God’s work? I don’t know. But, for the rest of my life, that rainbow will stay with me in a deep and profound way.
Onward.
Jeremy Waltner is husband to Stacey and Dad to Ella & Oliver. Stop, Observe. And, above all, feel.
