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Enjoyment and pride

Sometimes a picture says even more than 1,000 words and that was the case with our Page 1 photo last week of Paul Spiess holding aloft his Amherst Citizen of the Year trophy.

The photo tells us of Spiess’s pride in being so honored, it says joy, it says thank you, it says community.

This is a photo that shows what it means be be part of a nation with many great reasons to celebrate itself on the anniversary of its birth: July 4. This is how Amherst celebrates every year — with a parade, with community events, with gatherings on the iconic Village Green, and by honoring one citizen who is emblamatic of all the town’s citizens and of the nation’s citizens at their best.

Those honored by Amherst through the years, as with those honored in Milford during the Pumpkin Festival, are those who have given to their community, who have been part of the life of the town, who have its best interests at heart.

We hear too little of these people on a regular basis. We hear more about people who are breaking laws or doing cruel or stupid things

But we like to think that a photo such as that of Paul Spiess in last week’s Cabinet gives us all a chance to reverse schadenfreude — it gives us a chance to obtain enjoyment from the joy of others, from the pride of others.