New Year’s Day 2007 and the top news stories of 2006 are old news now, lost in the auld lang syne haze of balloons, bourbon and confetti. There’s one 2006 story that tops my list for 2006 because its moral takeaway remains constant. It’s the story about the man who showed up.
Hoy Wong was honored in 2006 by the Algonquin Hotel on the occasion of his 90th birthday and his 27 years tending bar there. During his 58 year career, he collected the wisdom, the stories, the joys and sorrows of famous people like Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and Marilyn Monroe. He met Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin and even the Duke of Windsor in 1961.
And he met many others passing through on their own travels to heaven and earth-based realities. Most importantly, he showed up. He never missed a day’s work except when he went to war. He showed up to reap the harvest of remembered blessings and devastating hurts. He showed up to serve the smooth signature cocktails along with helpings from experiences others shared with him. He showed up and passed on those stories through contemporary generations.
The top news stories continue to echo down those 58 years – war, politics, hunger, disease, economic busts. The news is constant though the affected people rotate in and out of the headlines according to the year, the geography or their celebrity. Mr. Hoy is another constant, a constant reminder to me at least that growing old is a gift and we need to celebrate it.
Eileen Marcus and Carol Orsborn