COLUMBIA, Tenn. (WTVF)— As a child, Robert Good never guessed he'd spend one chapter of his life serving in the military, another chapter working as a veterinarian, and another chapter as a chicken farmer. At 89 years old, Good is in the fourth chapter.
"I started drawing all sorts of things," Good said. "I had a big package of colored pencils, and I'd draw and color with them. I try to paint a little bit every day. butterflies and hummingbirds are my favorite."
He signs each work with "Opa," the name his grandchildren call him.
So, what sent a veteran veterinarian chicken farmer in this new artistic direction? A few years ago, Good's wife was injured in a fall. She was recovering in the hospital.
"I sat down and drew a monarch butterfly, and I took it over there to her," Robert remembered. "Every day, I'd take her a butterfly. She said, 'You're getting better at this.'"
With her encouragement, Good walked into Riverside Antiques in Columbia, Tennessee, to meet owner Julie Malone.
"Every piece has a story, but the most interesting part is when a person comes in and tells you their story," she said. "That's what happened with Opa."
Good presented her with greeting cards he had created.
"I could not believe how beautiful they were," Malone said. "I am selling his cards exclusively at Riverside Antiques now. No one can believe that he just started."
Good is proving that it's never too late for a new chapter in life.
"He's very inspirational," Malone said. "He's showing the world you don't have to be one thing. You can do many different things well. The fact he's found something else he's passionate about is wonderful."
A man with numerous life chapters says, at 89, he's planning to have another two chapters.
"I'm gonna come up with something else," he smiled. "It's wide open. I can't sit still. Who knows?"
This story was originally reported by Forrest Sanders on newschannel5.com.
