"I FEEL LIKE A SCHOOLGIRL" (January 26 - February 28, 2023)

Edisto Island Sunrise

Wes and Marcia Bittenbender at Botany Bay

Our time in central Florida came to an end on February 25 as we headed to South Carolina to finish our "winter". This time we would be on Edisto Island (WYNDHAM OCEAN RIDGE) until May.  Long-time friends had joined us for our final week at WYNDHAM CYPRESS PALMS and, together, we made our way to the Carolina Low Country. Our time in Florida was everything we had hoped it would be.  The weather was always warm with more days in the 80s than 70s and plenty of sunshine.  The resort was excellent and the staff accommodating.  It will always be one of our favorites. But there's just something special about Ocean Ridge and Edisto Island. It's not for everyone but it is for us. It is a place that we treasure.

REFLECTIONS

The six-and-a-half-hour drive from Kissimmee, Florida, to Edisto Island, South Carolina, was nearly completed.  The road trip, with four weary travelers crammed into a small vehicle with all their luggage, was coming to an end.  As we made the final turn unto route 174, we knew that in a matter of thirty minutes or so we would arrive at WYNDHAM OCEAN RIDGE.

It was then that from the crowded back seat that I heard my wife of 54 years proclaim; "Every time we make that turn, I feel like a schoolgirl".  I am not exactly sure what she meant but I believe it was an expressed outpouring of anticipation of what was to come.

We have made that turn many times in the past 38 years and, after the first time, every time we feel like we are coming home. It's hard to explain but, for us, there is just something very special about our South Carolina Island.

Our friends will leave in the morning to head back to Michigan.  Other family members will show up later but in the meantime, we will just be at home.  We'll watch the dolphin play in the Sound, we'll walk down the shell covered beach, we'll watch both sunrises and sunsets (you can do that on an island), and we'll soak it all in. I have already booked several weeks for next year.  However, at our age, who knows what 12 months will hold.  Until then, we will cherish each moment.

What is it, where is it, in your life that you feel "like a schoolgirl".  Where is it that you genuinely look forward to being?  Find that place, that special place, go there often while you can, and be blessed.

Edisto Island Sunset