"My friends are my estate." ~ Emily Dickinson

In my very first blog post, I wrote about celebrating my first official day of retirement with a dear group of friends. I shared how we have laughed and laughed together over the years, supporting each other through good times, and not so good times. Some of us have lost loved ones since that first post. Now, for the first time, we have lost one of our own.

At 85, she had lived a good, long life. She had long since retired from the Junior High before I began teaching there, so I did not know her in the same way that many of our group did. When we all gathered monthly however, she never failed to ask me about my family, or to share the memories of the many trips that she had taken with her husband over the years. 

In a few short weeks, our group will gather to celebrate the June birthdays among us. It will not be the same - and the seasons, they go 'round and 'round. We will miss you Birdie.