If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my 80 years, it’s that life rarely follows the plans we make for it.
- I’ve been a stay-at-home mom who had the privilege of raising two wonderful children.
- I’ve served as a PTA president and a Girl Scout leader.
- I’ve taught Sunday School to a room full of energetic kids.
- I’ve sewn clothes, done alterations, and helped people feel a little better about themselves.
- I’ve been a Regional Vice President for a large cable television company, overseeing operations across North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Florida.
- I’ve sold real estate for years—and I’m still helping people find the place they call home.
- I’ve lived the country life in an old farmhouse with a wraparound porch, a big garden, chickens in the yard, and shelves full of home-canned food.
- I was raised by a remarkable single mother after my father died when I was nine years old. She taught me something that has stayed with me every day since: never quit… and never believe you can’t do something just because you’re a girl.
- I was also blessed with another remarkable influence in my life—my Granny. Long before herbs became popular and people talked about natural living, Granny was already living it. Looking back now, I realize she planted much more than vegetables. She planted a love for growing things, making things with my own hands, helping people naturally when I could, and believing that some of life’s greatest wisdom is found in the old ways. Those lessons have stayed with me for eighty years, and they’re finding their way back into my life in ways I never expected.
Have I made mistakes? More than a few. Have I taken wrong turns? Absolutely. Would I change any one of them? Probably not, because every twist in the road taught me something I needed to know.
Today, at 80 years old…
I’m beginning another chapter. One that’s filled with old-fashioned wisdom, Granny’s stories, herbs from the garden, simple living, faith, laughter, and the lessons that only come from living long enough to collect a few scars along the way.
But, most of all, it’s a chapter about discovering that God isn’t finished writing our story just because we’ve turned another page.
Okay, let’s get on to this next chapter… it starts with a garden hose and a bag of mulch.
