From the Editor-In-Chief

My baby turns 21 in March, and I have to admit that the milestone fell under my radar until a recent meeting with Kelli Campbell to discuss another momentous moment: Joseph's Salon & Spa's 50th anniversary. As Kelli talked about growing up in the salon (the business was founded by her parents when she was a toddler), it reminded me of how my daughter's life has been documented in the pages of this magazine.

Claire helping me make salsa in 2003, the year that Sophisticated Living was launched.

Over the years, I have used the space provided for my editor's letter to share the trials and triumphs of being a working mother. The catharsis created by penning this piece genuinely helped me work through the bittersweet burden of gradually emptying the nest. The experience was even more gratifying when I heard from readers going through similar life changes who said they found comfort in my words.

I absolutely burst with pride when I see how my daughter Claire has deftly bridged the chasm from adolescent to adult. This transition was put on a fast track, no doubt, by a strict COVID lockdown in France that kept her primarily confined to a one-square-kilometer area around her Dijon apartment for many months.

Before moving to France in 2018, she considered making a box of Kraft Mac & Cheese the apogee of her culinary skills. Now, her Instagram stories regularly depict a cornucopia of comestible creations, such as elaborately themed weekend brunches and a Super Bowl "snack stadium". The life she has created for herself is nothing I could have ever imagined, and that's how it should be, entirely self-determined. Now that she's officially launched into the world, it's been interesting to see her become a cheerleader for me and chasing dreams in my life's second act.

Still crazy after all these years. An outtake from our 2021 New Year’s card. Photo by Tony Bailey.

My parents had a similar unfettered approach to deciding who and what I wanted to be as an adult. However, my impertinent and fiercely independent tendencies prompted the mention of military school on more than one occasion. Armed with their core values and an encouraging "the world is your oyster" attitude, I tried on several career paths before fortuitously falling into this one. With more "pinch me" moments than I can count, I am grateful for this now seventeen-year career journey and that my daughter rode shotgun with me for most of it. March 8th is International Women's Day, and quite by happenstance, it coincides with an issue that is positively packed with girl power. It seems only fitting to dedicate this issue to my daughter; an 88-page birthday card full of inspiration.

Bridget Williams, Editor-In-Chief bridget@slmag.net