One of the hard things about getting older is you know that people you admire very much are probably going to die before you do. For years, the example of this that I've always invoked in conversation is Paul Newman. That my world would someday not have Paul Newman in it seemed so very sad. And now that day has come, and those blue eyes have closed forever.
I have long admired Paul Newman's outspoken and strongly liberal political voice, his self-deprecating humor, his long happy marriage, and above all, his amazing generosity and creative philanthropy. It's nice when famous people give money to charitable causes. It's fabulous when they not only give money, but give of themselves too, over and over. What genius to create a foundation that generates money on an ongoing basis, through the sale of food products! He once said, "There are three rules for running a business; fortunately, we don't know any of them." Newman's Own is the world's biggest bake sale, and it's given more than $250 million dollars so far to good causes. My ancestor shrine this Samhain will have a bottle of salad dressing on it, as I give thanks for a brilliant example of a life well lived.
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