It’s the last week of February already! Not possible. . . . My brother, sister, two uncles on my mother’s side of the family, and I have had our birthdays. March will have just as many (my father-in-law, sister-in-law, niece, and son in person; my mother-in-law and my father in heaven). The cherry tree is blooming, the blossoms just opening into white “snow,” as A. E. Housman wrote in his poem. And because it’s the end of the month, it’s time for my monthly “Currently” reflection.

Currently, I’m

loving taking photo walks around the ponds Grampa built so many years ago and exploring the woods off the “beaten trail” I usually take.

eating dark chocolate with sea-salted caramel centers

reading historical novels. The First Ladies is one of my favorite ones so far, but I do love escaping into the nineteenth century.

working with some soft bamboo yarn to make a crocheted blanket

celebrating my sixty-sixth trip around the sun with my family

giving thanks for the life I have and the loves of my life

planning the spring tour of South Carolina’s state parks

feeling sad (a former student, a former principal, and spouses of dear friends have passed) and joyful at the same time.

I have to say that my life at this moment in time is good. I have reconnected with my college roommate, who lives about an hour and a half away in North Carolina now instead of five hours away in Florida. My health is much better, and I am becoming more active in other ways. I am making the most of my retirement!