We find stories in every little moment and gather them up readily. We imagine that the unknown isn’t the worst scenario and we try to make sense of the senseless. We look for the silver lining and the whys and what ifs and what should have beens. We try to solve the puzzle, pieces scattered through time and space and the deepest corners of our memories. And what better way is there of doing that, what better way is there of processing our past, than by rewriting it?

Cecile Pin, Wandering Souls

In my brain, April is Easter, Beaufort, Lucy’s season, Thomasville. I love these daily photos and Looking Back practice for reminding me it was so much more!

Five Favorite Things

1. a morning walk in the park and another to the lake
2. celebrating our 13th year in Beaufort
3. and our 1st in Thomasville
4. Easter Sunday church, in person, with brass accompaniment
5. Lucy learned a new thing

Five Things I Want to Remember

1. It’s tempting to want to forget that week that Lucy and I spent side by side, mostly in the chair in my study, but I’m so glad I was there for her, that I had books to read, sweaters to knit, and a laptop … and that it was over a bit sooner than I expected.
2. Planning is one of my favorite parts of any trip, and I need to hold those plans loosely once the trip begins.
3. Take all the photos. They’re easy to delete, but impossible to re-create.
4. Porch time seems like it started early this year; first photo on April 22.
5. We need a good photo from our dinner club (again!)

We had our fourth Go-to Dinners Club on the 23rd; my mom hosted. It was great to have all six of us together again; of course the conversation sparkled and we had five dishes to sample!

We prepared everything as written and it was all delicious. This was the second time making the pork after trying it the first time in Beaufort. It turned out perfectly again (we are still in awe of Ina figuring out the timing); note that it’s important to have the meat all about the same thickness, so tuck the end bits (and tie with string) if necessary. The leftover peppers traveled with us to Thomasville and featured in Friday Night Snacks™ (and the “leftover quesadillas” we made Saturday night). Sara decided the preserves Ina suggested (p 64) were way too sweet to even attempt. Her version used strawberries, rhubarb, and maybe half the sugar? it was perfect. as was the lightly whipped and sweetened cream. (and aren’t my mom’s dessert plates pretty?!)

I made another phenology wheel in my Season journal.

and finally learned how the date for Easter is set! Tracking the moon’s phases helps; Easter is always the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring solstice. I did enjoy tracking the data for the places I traveled to. Noted that none of the things I track were really that much different than home, but expect that would be different if I ventured further away and/or traveled in a different season.

And that’s it for April! What favorite memory are you recalling from last month?