I “kinda” miss those fun posts and stories from all my Maqua girls. My camping experiences at Burningman were posted after the fact. (Post camping, but the memories were vivid.) Once the stories from campers and staff ended, I probably could have kept on going with interviews from other women, but as one camper so aptly stated, “YOU HAVE TO STOP SOMEWHERE!” (She was so eager for the book to come out and her name will remain a secret–Nancy, you know who you are.)

I am on Facebook with so many of the girls I interviewed and many have become such great friends. This week Randi Wynne-Parry will visit me in Florida. It is so fun meeting the women who left their joy in the walls of my summer home, for I believe I can still hear their voices. The stories continue and the relationships evolve. All of you have brought a wonderful dimension to my life. There were some who were annoyed at me for their own reasons, but as my editor said, “Where there is controversy, there is readership”, so I accepted the good with the bad.

Having sold our golf business and home in Florida, life has become a simpler life and I am enjoying it. We are living in our guest house for the time being and enjoying the ability to lock it and leave to visit family and friends. Soon, our Michigan golf course will be a business of the past. Retirement has been lovely! My husband and I worked together for over 45 years and still enjoy being together, so I guess that makes us a rare breed of marriage material.

This past summer was a family summer. Our children grew up on Loon Lake in the lodge with mixed feelings of leaving their friends in Florida for the entire summer. Now that they are grown with families of their own, they wonder why their appreciation was not greater. We, as parents, are grateful that they realize what a treasure this little slice of heaven in Hale is. We managed to get 99% of our brood together for one day this summer, but many of them spent a month. Many new memories were made with our children and grandchildren.

Every once in a while I get a message from a previous camper who will be passing through the area, wondering if they can stop to say hello. I am always happy to host a little tour, but only if they promise to bring me a slice of their happy memories of summers at Camp Maqua.

I wish you and yours the best in 2020. Thank you for always sharing your memories of this happy place!