R
from the editor
Recently, my daughter threw herself across our bed once again complaining that she had no one to play with. As an introvert with more siblings than I know what to do with, this particular plight isn’t one I can easily identify with. I always imagined unlimited quiet time was the dream. My extroverted only child couldn’t disagree more. So on this particular day, she flipped over, pointed at my husband and me and said “I wish y’all two could be kids with me.” Of course, we immediately agreed. Long summer days of doing whatever we wanted sprung to mind. For me, I pictured long days beside the pool reading books. I imagine my husband thought of hot days on the tennis courts. There is a stage of life where summer signals a time of rest and renewal, where you are given months to slow down, to follow your own particular interests, to recoup from the pressure of grades or state testing. And then one day that space to breathe that seems to be built into the calendar just disappears. One day, you wake up and realize summer is not different than the rest of the year, except maybe hotter. This year, I intended to recreate that feeling of summer freedom. I pictured days at the park with my daughter, a book in my hand and her laughter filling the air. After the last few years filled with graduate school, high demand volunteer positions, and the hands-on energy of raising a toddler, I was looking forward to something a little bit easier. Instead, I came back to Brookhaven Magazine. When I stopped writing for the Daily Leader and Brookhaven Magazine in 2017, I was exhausted. I had an almost 1-year-old I was caring for full-time. I was wrapping up my first year back in the dance world. And I was dealing with the fact that somewhere along the way I had lost my own personal writing. The stories in my head had been replaced with a to-do list that only ever seemed to get longer. Now four years later, I’m picking up where I left off. There’s always something special about the place you’re from, the place that helped make you who you are. And Brookhaven is no exception, in part because of the people that make up this community. The best thing about working for Brookhaven Magazine is getting to know those people, to hear about their passions, and this issue is filled with people pursing
their passions. We’ve got farmers filled with a passion for caring for the land and for our food. You can see this in our farmer’s market story from many different growers, but we got to dive in a bit deeper to what that can mean with Jayne Brown as she shared how she was working to create a more symbiotic relationship with her land as she shifted into permaculture. Our history story is a compilation of anecdotes from people last century that were passionate about Brookhaven. How much do you think has changed? How much has stayed the same? Artistry requires a certain amount of passion, and MSA Alum Destiny Stone is no exception as she shares her thoughts on the craft of writing music. You can hear some of her original songs live right here in Brookhaven at the end of September. Finally, I got to catch up with two people I met at Brookhaven High School. Jamarius Waller and Hannah Rice Turbeville both decided to pursue a PhD as well as a medical degree, and they spent three additional years in the middle of their medical training to become better researchers. The fact that I was struck with while talking to them both is the passion they had in their quest for the knowledge. They each had a gift for science, but more importantly, they were both driven by a desire to help others with that gift and help create better medicine for us all. In the issues to come, we’ve got big plans. I would love nothing better than to see this magazine grow and become a true embodiment of what this community means. But I need your help. I’d love to hear what you would like to see in the magazine. Whether it’s a home or garden you think we just have to feature, or a hidden artist whose talent should be better known, please let me know. It’s my goal to serve this community in the best way I know how: telling stories. Julia V. Miller is the Associate Editor of Brookhaven Magazine. She can be reached at Julia.vanstory@ gmail.com.
Brookhaven Magazine 7
