"One Door Shutting"

Now this has been a week. I started out on top of the world, just having a good time with all the great elements of my life. My family, my friends, my career - it was all going great. Then I got a phone call. It was from Rob Maynard, a man I had never met. He is the new Program Director for Georgia Public Broadcasting's radio division.

My new best friend Rob was calling to tell me that my weekly radio show "Fridays With Jackie" was being cancelled. As I sputtered and gulped I think I did manage to ask why. His response was the show had no focus. Then he added that since it was on during "Morning Edition" on Fridays it had to possess a certain level of content and sadly "FWJ" didn't rise to the challenge.

That was it. Seventeen months after this venture started it was over. Shot down in the prime of life. Was I angry, you bet. Was I embarrassed, even more so. Was I surprised, yes and that is where I was an idiot. I honestly believed that if you gave your heart and soul to something and presented it with sincerity it would work. 

When I first presented the idea of "Fridays With Jackie" to St John Flynn I did so to help publicize all the creative people in Georgia. I wanted to talk about Terry Kay and Steve Berry but I also wanted to talk about Jackie White and Dale Cramer. The big names will always have their time in the sun but the ones who are not quite at that top rung sometimes get overlooked.

So during these seventeen months we have had the opportunity to do just that. And my gosh has the reception been overwhelming. As I have gone around the state taking part in different events or speaking to different groups, I have been bombarded with comments from people who said they tuned in every week. Then there was the most frequently asked question, "What is St John Flynn really like?" The answer, "Your guess is as good as mine."

The second most stated comment always tickled me. People would say, "You must be making the big bucks now." Yeah, sure. It cost me to do the show. I did not get paid. It was a voluntary thing from the start. For the first year I drove to Atlanta from Perry each week to record the show and that costs money. Later I was able to go to Macon to tape. 

Money wasn't the motivator. It was a labor of love. It was something that was fun to do and it was also very rewarding to my spirit. Plus St John is great fun to work with and I enjoyed his dry sense of humor. I really do think "Fridays With Jackie" showed a side of him that never came through on "Cover To Cover."

So now that it has been cancelled do I regret doing it? Absolutely not. I had a wonderful time. Plus the e-mails and comments I have gotten since word got out that it had been cancelled have been terrifically gratifying. 

One door has closed, but I am sure another one will open. It won't be on Georgia Public Broadcasting but there are other venues. So stay tuned. Life is a journey and I feel there are more paths left to follow in my life.
 

 

 

 

 

©2007 Jackie K. Cooper

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