Have you ever read your old journals and been amazed at who you used to be? That’s the experience we had at CATALYST last month as we perused the past 30 years of publishing this magazine. I speak of not just the magazine’s transformation through time, but the community we write about. It has grown and matured in ways unforeseen in 1982 when we started what at the time seemed like a lark.
We’ve compiled lists: of ways in which we think CATALYST has made a difference, topics we wrote about that were before their time, stories to revisit, what’s changed and what’s remained the same. We made lists of office babies, layouts we liked, cover art we’ve loved, people who’ve departed (one way or another), stories you particularly enjoyed.
We interviewed people from long ago, noting again and again that the passage of time seems so short, yet so much life has been lived in the meantime.
And photos. We’ve gathered dozens of photos, of staff members through the years; office cats and dogs; lots of parties. And that’s not even the digital files.
Here are some fruits of this labor. Our eyes were bigger than our print belly. To be continued next month. That’s okay. This is only issue #300. We’ve got plenty of time to reflect.
We’ve collected comments from you, our readers: What connections have you made through CATALYST? Through our pages have you found something, or someone, that you love?
Due to the eyes-were-bigger-than-our-print-belly syndrome, we will publish your replies next month. Deadline is extended to August 20. All respondents are eligible for a drawing for dinner for two with the CATALYST publishers at Pago. Want to go to dinner? Tell me what you think. Email me (subject: CATALYST CONNECTIONS): greta@catalystmagazine.net
Thank you. Thank you, my priceless staff, and all the writers and photographers whose efforts fill these pages, month after month, year after year. Thank you, advertisers: Your support enables us to carry on. Thank you, readers, for making CATALYST relevant: Without your support, why would we bother? Thank you everyone for showing up, month after month, at this word gathering. Let the beauty and fun unfold.
Greta Belanger deJong is the editor and publisher of CATALYST. greta@catalystmagazine.net. As of last month, she looks nothing like the person in the above photo. But that’s another story…