My life as a wife of a corporate manufacturing manager recently took a major change. My husband retired. That meant that our lives finally became our own! We could finally choose where to live and how long to stay in one place. For us it was a no brainer. We would return home (Arkansas and Missouri - where our families live) - a place we left 35 years ago.

Our return would not be immediate, though. You see, although we are empty nesters, we still have a child at home - he is in college and we do not want to pull the nest out from under him. Our plan became to spend time in two places over the next several years. Home is now Charlotte, NC and Eagle Rock, Missouri. We chose Eagle Rock because my 84 year old mother lives on the lake by herself. One day she is going to need our assistance. Right now she needs no help and is happy to tell anyone how she lives on 300 acres by herself and likes it - thank you very much! But one day she will need us, so we are beginning to put down roots by the lake.

So here I am - by the lake, beginning a new life. I will continue to work in the garden - woods and pastures and write and speak. So stay tuned while I organize my thoughts and begin to share with you some insights I have gained over my years of marriage, moving and being mentored by wise women whose involvement made all the difference in my live.