I started to hear about Nina Griscom for the first time in the 1970s, when I was working in New York City. Since then, she’s always been on the media radar and social scene; you didn’t have to be in New York to hear about her, you would catch a media bit in New York Magazine or Bazaar, or Vogue. Her trademarks were visible even through the media prism–a sharp sense of humor, a certain blue blood grace and humility, enough energy to attend multiple social events a week and the type of easy, refined beauty that many aspire to but few possess naturally. It seemed a glamorous, effortless life from a distance, and if there were any dark elements, they certainly didn’t appear in public.
Nina had dipped out of sight until the other day, when I ran across a big article about her in the New York Times. The gist of it: no matter how golden your life, there’s always the chance of a downturn. And so it is with Nina, in her case a health issue. How she’s handling it (vs. how it’s handling her) is the basis of the story, and it’s worth your time. As my friend Miles Geauxbye, the Southern VC once said, “You never get another chance to make a last impression” and Nina is intent on riding out her fate with the same grace and humor that has marked her life. There’s a life lesson there and we should all learn it.
The Fine Print: Image courtesy of our friends at Getty Images (gettyimages.com) who have the photographic history of the 20th and 21st century on file. This image has not been altered in any way. We thank them for sharing. Link courtesy of The New York Times. Post text copyright 2019 donald pierce. Produced by the Media Bunker and Perception Engineering.