Ramberg

I’d like Jim Ramberg’s family to know how sorry I am for their loss. I remember hearing my dad say things like, the older he got, the more funerals he had to go to. I’m starting to understand what he was talking about. Actually, I’m starting to understand a lot of things he used to say to me. I wish I’d told him that while I still had the chance. Funny how life works.
I’d also like to Jim’s family for sharing him with us. It takes a special person to make a difference in so many people’s lives. He was just that kind of person. If you don’t mind, I’d like to tell you a story about the impact he had on me.
You’d have to know me to understand my fascination with columnists. For years I read all the attack, counter-attack political columnists I could get my hands on. I loved that stuff. I was determined, this is what I wanted to do. About two years ago I discovered this great local newspaper called The Topeka Metro News. The only thing I knew about them was that they carried “Ann Coulter.” I was hooked. I love her “attack dog” style. That, and the fact that she’s hot. Another attack dog is Molly Ivins. I’ve hated almost everything she’s ever written, but loved her style. Yeah, this is what I wanted to do.
A couple of weeks later I started reading this guy I’d never heard of. His name was Jim Ramberg. The more I read his column the more I liked it. He didn’t call people names. He didn’t insult anyone. If he was hard on anyone it was himself. Yet I looked forward to his column every week. How could this be?
I guess I started studying his work. I didn’t learn till later he’d been at the Capital-Journal for years. I began searching their archives for some of his earlier work. What I learned was, you could be a decent guy and still be an effective writer.
I noticed the Metro didn’t run his column for two or three weeks, then there were a couple of weeks of “The Best Of Jim Ramberg.” I was pretty sure something was wrong, and started asking questions. All I could find out for sure was, Jim was facing a few health issues. I worried about him, and hoped he’d recover soon. I guess I wasn’t through with my studies.
I still remember Jim’s last column. He explained he’d been living on borrowed time for quite awhile, and that it would be one of his last columns. He talked about some of his regrets. And said a life without regrets would have been damn boring. I hoped for just one more column, just one more lesson. As it turned out, I’d already had my last lesson. Jim had taught me all he could.
I have no idea how long I’ll be allowed to write this column. But I do know, without people like Jim Ramberg’s influence I’d still be attacking people I disagreed with. I’d be calling them names. Yeah, I’d be like Ann Coulter. And I’d be writing somewhere else.
We’re all born, and we’re all going to die. That’s a given. It’s what you do in between that matters. I think we all want to do something to make a difference. It’s easy to make a difference within one’s own family or circle of friends. But it takes someone special to make a difference in someone’s life you’ve never met.
Thank you Jim. Thank you for sharing your life with us.