Sometimes You Find Yourself in the Middle Of Nowhere, and ...

By D. Kenyon Williams Jr. 

“Sometimes you find yourself in the middle of nowhere, and sometimes in the middle of nowhere, you find yourself" is one of those unattributed quotes I seem to remember kicking around since the 1970s. Somehow, it seems so very applicable to August.

When January arrives, we often feel so drained that it is hard to think about "doing it all over again." But we stiffen our resolve and "soldier on" despite the feeling that we need a vacation to recover from November and December. However, the first few months of the year go by in a flash and seem to require an extraordinary amount of time and energy to meet our professional and personal activities. Spring break comes and goes, then Tax Day, and maybe some vacation time is in there somewhere.

Then, as hard as it is to believe, August arrives, and it is the "middle" of the OBA’s year. The first half of our association’s year is over, and we look around and think, “What have we accomplished?" With no hope of comprehensively listing all of the activities and projects that have occurred since Jan. 1, here are some I observed firsthand:

• The OBA Membership Engagement Committee has been reaching out to our state’s law schools.
• The Lawyers Helping Lawyers Assistance Program continues to support our members.
• The Board of Governors is implementing the strategic plan drafted under Past President Miles Pringle’s leadership.
• The Board of Governors continues to hold some of the monthly meetings and joint receptions in various counties around the state to be inclusive of more members.
• The OBA Legislative Monitoring Committee conducted another successful Legislative Kickoff and Day at the Capitol.
• Leadership Academy is gearing up for its next class, which will begin in January, and applications will open in September.
• Smokeball Bill, a free trust accounting and billing software for our members, was launched.
• The OBA Law Day Committee conducted another successful Law Day and Ask A Lawyer event.
• Statewide celebrations of our members achieving milestone anniversaries were held.
• The Solo & Small Firm Conference was reinvented and held in conjunction with the Oklahoma Judicial Conference.
• The design has been approved and architects have been retained to finalize the plans for long-needed changes to the Oklahoma Bar Center for ease of use, including handicap accessible modifications.

With all that behind us, there is so much to anticipate for the rest of the association's year! If you ever find yourself saying, “Someone should do something about ___,” here is your chance. Our 2025 Annual Meeting will be held Nov. 6-7 at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Downtown Hotel. Sept. 8 is the deadline for nominations to be submitted for Board of Governors vacancies. Please submit your nominations and get involved in “doing something about ___.”

It cannot be said too often how proud I am of our members for all that they do. Each one of you, with your own time demands, both professional and personal, still finds time to go beyond what is required and give back to the profession and your community. I know there are times you feel overcommitted and underappreciated (and maybe like you are in the "middle of nowhere"), but please do not grow weary of doing good! “Find yourself” through your service to others. Although you may not ever know the full impact of your efforts, everything you do contributes to the collective effort of our association to improve the profession and our communities.

A personal experience is an example of how what we do affects others. After a completely unexpected eight-day hospital stay (which felt like “the middle of nowhere” to me), Fred Slicker, an OBA member who has since died, sent me a signed copy of his book, This I Believe. The book is both a synopsis and a statement of beliefs resulting from his intense study of the Bible, as well as a bit of an autobiography. It also contains references to the inspiration and renewal Mr. Slicker found from his fishing experiences in the White River in Arkansas: “The river is a symbol of the circle of life itself. Sometimes, the river roars down a steep mountain gorge with the fury of a spring thunderstorm, destroying everything in its path. At other times, the river meanders gently through the deep holes where the big browns feed. But always and forever, the river is in constant motion, continuing to create and sustain all forms of life. The river is a symbol of hope, restoration, regeneration, recreation and renewal.” I was touched and encouraged by Mr. Slicker’s gift and wanted to share it with you.

What was uncanny was that I had just resurrected and reread The Re-Creation of Brian Kent, one of the less well-known writings of Harold Bell Wright, author of The Shepherd of the Hills, The Eyes of the World and When a Man's a Man. Mr. Wright wove his story around a river in Missouri, where a retired teacher continued to live a life of teaching through her example of grace and mercy. The story, beautifully told, is of a young banker whose poor choices led to criminal conduct, which caused him to try to take his own life by drowning himself in the river. Instead, he is found and cared for by the teacher and another one of her students. The story of the young banker's "recreation" of himself as an author is an inspiring story of learning from mistakes, doing what can be done to correct them and growing from the experience. Throughout the story, Mr. Wright uses the river as a symbol of life:

I would teach them the things you have taught me. I would say to everyone that I could persuade to listen: “It doesn't in the least matter what your experience is, the old river is still going on to the sea. No matter if every woman you ever knew has proved untrue, virtuous womanhood still IS. No matter if every man you ever knew has proved false, true manhood still IS. If every friend you ever had has betrayed your friendship, loyal friendship still IS. If you have found nothing in your experience but dishonesty and falsehood and infidelity and hypocrisy, it is only because you have been unfortunate in your experience; because honesty and fidelity and sincerity are existing FACTS. They are the very foundational facts of life, and can no more fail life than the river can fail to reach the sea.”

I hope Mr. Wright's words from the early 1900s will resonate with you as they do with me and be helpful to you as you reflect on your "middle of nowhere." In closing, I want you to know that I believe in the value of our profession and service, and I believe in you. As always, thank you for your service!

 

D. Kenyon “Ken” Williams Jr. is a shareholder and director at Hall Estill in Tulsa.

---

Originally published in the Oklahoma Bar Journal – OBJ 96 Vol 6 (August 2025).

Statements or opinions expressed in the Oklahoma Bar Journal are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff.