from the editor

It’s finally February and we’ve all got both feet in 2023 – hopefully your year is off to a good start. To me, January is always kind of a transition month. I’m working to catch up after time off and travel during the holidays, and I often seem to get sick or dealing with a longer-term medical issue. There’s planning the calendar for the new year and looking back at the previous year to see what was accomplished, while also completing items on the to-do list like the dreaded yearend accounting and taxes.

I end up feeling like I’m facing forward and backward at the same time, which creates a sense of stasis.

But February – that’s when things really get rolling. I get to see if my new year goals/resolutions/changes are actually going to translate into new and improved habits. This is when the rubber really meets the road.

February can also be a light and fun month. There’s Valentine’s Day, which often inspires couples to focus on each other or inspires friends to gather for a “Galentine’s.” Locally, we have Mardi Gras to gather as a community and laissez les bons temps rouler.

In this February issue of Bella we are having fun with red. We’ve got red jewelry, clothes, wine, dining and even a couple of women in red Pensacon costumes (check out the story on page 34, there’s some serious artistry at work).

We also take a look at the red emotion – anger (page 28). Anger is an interesting emotion, it’s easy to see it as bad or wrong, but it is a natural emotion that we all feel from time to time. It’s how we express and manage that anger that is important. It’s also important to figure out what we really are mad about. It usually goes deeper than the fact that someone didn’t load the dishwasher right.

I hope you enjoy this issue and this month of February. I have wrapped up 2022 and am fully facing forward, and I hope you are, too!