Even the most experienced reporters worry that they will come back from an assignment with nothing to write. I found myself today with the opposite problem: I couldn't keep my pen moving fast enough to get down everything said today at the funeral for Michael Murphy.
By the end, my notebook was filled with quotes, some nearly illegible from my rapid scrawlings, all with high praise for the life of Murphy, a longtime public servant who most recently worked as Dutchess County's public works commissioner.
Here is one.
"Mike was in his glory when he was surrounded by his friends, of which there were so many," said Steve Wing, who delivered the eulogy. "And when you became Mike's friend, you became his friend for life."
Reporters have to keep an objective distance from their sources, and this can be difficult when those sources are genuinely decent and inspiring people. I never got to know Murphy that well, let alone enough to become his friend, though several of my colleagues in the newsroom here knew him for years and were shaken by the news of his death.
I think I learned of Murphy's cancer last fall around county budget time. I was told that he had taken a turn for the worse, and the outlook was grim. But then, maybe a month later, I saw him again at a Legislature meeting, seemingly back to normal. He continued working to the end.
Since then, after hearing stories about the man, I wish I knew him better. The word "dignity" kept coming to my mind, though I know the word is limited. Only one of many to describe Murphy's clear passion for life and the people he served.
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