Before I turned in my press badge a few months ago identifying me as a working journalist in good standing, I read “Super-Charged Retirement” by Mary Lloyd, who advises her readers to “ditch the rocking chair, trash the remote and do what you love.”Love is one of my favorite words. I love digging for all kinds of information. I feel an even deeper love for the art of communicating with the written word. Musicians make tunes, but writers create word pictures. Wow.

I love my children and grandchildren, so I moved to Arizona to participate in their lives in full. It is a joy getting to know my son here in Arizona and my daughter nearby in California as adults. My third-grade granddaughter’s teacher put me in charge of crafts one day in December. My 13-year-old grandson recruited me to help him pick a cookie recipe suitable for a school project. We made cookies from Ghana, and I was on hand to hear him tell his social studies classmates the whys and wherefores. I am trying to teach my 16-year-old granddaughter how to crochet. She is making a hat. It is slow-going, however, as she prefers to work on it only when she visits me here at my condo.

These two loves are the bookends that currently define me. All that remains is using the time in between to figure out what I want to do with the rest of life otherwise.

Having such freedom is a powerful gift. To be sure, power is invisible and identifiable only by its impact. The tools of power run the gamut from political, economic, social, religious, environmental and commercial. We know that the use of power carries with it the potential for abuse and misuse. Even in the absence of abuse, the flow of power determines what gets done and what does not — creating conditions for making good or bad things happen to us all in other words.

Powerful people make things happen either individually or in concert with others, which brings me to my point. On August 13, 2008, as then-Editor-In-Chief of The National Provisioner magazine, I debuted my first blog called “A Young Perspective.” Based on the responses I received, some of you found my thoughts of interest in some fashion or another.

For years you shared your professional stories with me, sometimes you allowed me a glimpse into your personal lives by introducing me to family members and even your beloved pets. Thanks to your willingness to answer my questions and to share your insights, I rarely found myself trapped in the wrong story.

I want to get reacquainted with you in this new phase of my life. My goal is a new-and-improved blog twice a month.

In the school of debate there are two sides to an issue — one for and the other against. Each argument must be credible to be convincing. Only one prevails in the end, however. In my mind it is the one most reasonable and beneficial for the collective good. It is with this in mind that I intend to dialogue on behalf of the industry by making a reasonable case concerning the business of rearing animals and processing them for human consumption.

Our setting will be called “the battleground” for, make no mistake, in these turbulent times doing business in the food industry calls for determined, brave and committed soldiers of every rank.

Ideas and concepts move the world. We all have a life to live and a job to do. The enlightened have always set the pace for progress in ways to benefit humanity — often through selfless courage.

I am grateful for this opportunity to continue to serve. I am reminded of words from a gospel tune that I love: “Please be patient with me; God is not through with me yet.” I would love to hear from you. Please do talk back to me in the space provided at the end of my blog. Call me if you like at (480) 883-1867 or e-mail barbara_young43@q.com. It would be nice to hear a “welcome back.”