Wastewater Visibility News
Beginnings and Endings: Thought leadership from Denver J Stutler, Jr., P.E
May 8, 2025
Denver Stutler, Jr., P.E.
Reflections on beginnings and endings in life, from Denver J Stutler, well-timed this Mother’s Day weekend to include observations from Denver’s mother.
My mother has an expression, “Life is a series of beginnings and endings.” And the further along I get in life, the more truth I find in that statement.
It is as John Irving, author of “The World According to Garp,” wrote: “You can only grow by coming to the end of something and by beginning something else.”
As I look back at every aspect of my life experience, from relationships I have had, to hobbies that I have enjoyed, to moments from my career, I see that it is a series of beginnings and endings that have brought me to where I am today.
One common myth I have discovered is that our experiences alone don’t make us wiser. Someone recently brought to my attention that it is not just the experiences, but the process of evaluating those experiences, that actually makes us wiser.
For example, when I look back at my relationship with my children and all the beginnings and endings we have been through – the early days as they learned to walk and talk, the first day of school, graduation, leaving home for college – my hope is that I have learned and have become a better parent by evaluating all the experiences that we have shared, for it is those beginnings and endings that tell the story of our life together.
At work, the process of building my relationships includes inspiring and leading my team; in my personal life, it is about having meaningful, loving, and honest relationships; and in the things I devote my time to, it is about making sure they are adding meaning and purpose to my life.
The beginnings and endings that are associated with purpose are the ones that make me feel better about myself. The beginnings and endings rooted in selfishness are the ones from which I learn the most.
The one thing we know for sure is that each of our lives has a beginning (our birth) and an ending (our death). And as my mother always said, “I have never seen a hearse pulling a U-Haul.” In other words, we must make the most of the time we have on this Earth by making the best choices and decisions we possibly can. We must learn from each beginning and each ending, as we weave together a life and legacy of which we can be proud.
Our friend, Matt Nestor (1980- 2025), was remembered especially as we spent time at one of the industry’s annual conferences, the Florida Water Resources Conference (FWRC). A time of sharing and being together will be greatly missed. Some endings mean more than others.
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