Eastern Editor’s Note
Piecing it all Together A
Telling the EMU story, one puzzle piece at a time
bout a year ago, I sat with my father and stared at the assortment of jigsaw puzzle pieces on the living room table. It was a sea of color and shapes and confusion, and
I was sure there was no way these pieces would ever interlock to form a picture—even though the box touted the puzzle as “EZ.” I’ve never been particularly good at this sort of thing, but it seemed like the perfect
activity to share with my father, who was struggling with dementia and Parkinson’s disease. Yet we both just sat and stared, perplexed by the task before us. I think my family sensed our impasse, because soon my nephew joined us, then my brother, then my brother-in-law, and within minutes the bits of red became apples, the brown hues were bushel baskets, an American fl ag was quickly evident, and then the image of a fruit stand stood gloriously before us. I’ve oſt en thought about that day. I know why my father struggled, but I’m not sure
why I did. I say that I’m not good at puzzles, but in fact Eastern magazine is a big puzzle. It’s actually more like the old jigsaw puzzle at your grandmother’s house, the one that’s not only missing several pieces but also has a few from a diff erent puzzle thrown into the box. Several times a year, it’s our job to make the EMU pieces interlock. Sometimes we end
up holding material for several issues, waiting for the most appropriate moment to share the story. Sometimes we scrounge for any small nugget we can fi nd so we can fi ll the space and complete the picture. T at’s what happened last year when we were put ing together the summer issue. We had a tiny space to fi ll. I asked a colleague for something brief and quirky, and she produced a 175-word article about a statue on campus. T e magazine was done. I had no idea that lit le piece, in many ways an aſt erthought, would lead to a feature story in this issue (“Unmasking Diane,” p. 22).
T at’s what’s diff erent about our recurring puzzle. T ere is no fi nal picture on a box. T ere
is no correct formula. It’s ours to create and then, when it’s fi nished, we get to start again. I hope you enjoy this version of our work.
—DG
Winter 2012 Vol. 9, Issue 2
EDITOR Darcy Giff ord ART DIRECTOR
Mike Andaloro (BFA75) CONTRIBUTORS
Dan Artman, Ravi Bandaranaike, Linda Hass,
Catherine Kavanaugh (BA86), Randy Mascharka (BBA85), Dan Mathis (BS07), Jeff Mortimer, Noah Pylvainen, Jeff Samoray, Leah Shutes, Ellen Weaver, Amy Whitesall
ABOUT EASTERN Eastern (ISSN 2150-4679) is published three
times a year by the Division of Communications at Eastern Michigan University 1215 N. Huron River Drive Ypsilanti, MI 48197-2351 All rights reserved.
The views presented are not necessarily those of the editor or the offi cial policies of the University.
ADDRESS CHANGES 1349 S. Huron St., Suite 2 Ypsilanti, MI 48197 734.487.0250
alumni.relations@
emich.edu Send story ideas to: 15 Welch Hall
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
easternmagazine@emich.edu
Eastern Michigan University is committed to excellence in teaching, the extension of knowledge through basic and applied
research, and creative and artistic expression. Building on a proud tradition of national leadership in the preparation of teachers, we maximize educational opportunities and personal and professional growth for students from diverse backgrounds through an array of baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral programs. We provide a student-focused
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4 Eastern | WINTER 2012
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