In her later years, my mother chose to return to St. Thomas, to her home there, and I saw my mother age and grow ill alone. It pained me that fewer and fewer friends or family visited her, and I saw her loneliness and sadness turn into bitterness.

For many years, I worked at a senior center in Boca Raton, Florida, and observed older widows living alone in their homes, be they modest homes or mansions on the ocean. Loneliness can live in all those places, and does. I chose, then, to write about women who made a different choice.

For a long while, I have had a deep interest in the concept of shared or co housing for/with/among older women, and I have found that many women like the idea of living together in apartments or various types of houses. Once, years ago, I tried to bring a group of women together for this purpose, but found the problems of matching people and figuring out legal and other aspects carried more responsibility than I could cope with.

There is, I am happy to share with you, and some of you may already know this, a growing movement across the country to bring ‘mature’ women into what is being called Aging in Community, rather than aging in isolation. In June’s Newsletter I will introduce you to an incredibly energetic and creative woman, and share with you the work in which she is involved, along with emails and website addresses, where you can gather further information on this topic.

I am about to begin a new novel called Early One Morning. It’s a love story, a woman 67, a man 73, and river rafting. I know little about rafting having gone on a #2 river once, so I will be interviewing river guides and friends with exciting rafting adventures to relate, and reading about rivers, and gear, and much more. I am also at the same time, finishing book 7 of the Ladies series.

My fifty-year old son is being married—his second marriage—on May 21st, to a lovely woman, and they are being married near a river in a glade of lovely, tall, old trees in a forest in Barnardsville. Many old and very dear friends, who have known David since he was a born, or a very little boy, are coming for what will be a wonderful reunion. I cannot imagine a greater gift than to gather with them for this happy occasion.

For me, the challenge will be to spend alone time with each one of them, and I will. But because all of this is happening here, at and near my home, I will not be sending out a newsletter in May. I’m sure you’ll understand.

No, not my son’s wedding. Max and Hannah’s wedding. And Two Days After the Wedding is the title of the 6th novel in the Ladies of Covington series. It will arrive at bookstores and at Amazon.com by early June. I hope that you will enjoy it.

Will Hannah move in with Max? There is the mystery of the birth of Ringo (a.k.a Jerry McCorkle) and his trial for attempting to seduce a minor (Lucy Banks through a computer chat room) and for the murder, years before, of old Hilda McCorkle. Emily and Russell's lives and family are threatened, when she refuses to drop a lawsuit against the principal of Lucy’s school. When she and Russell agree to a trial separation, will Emily take three-year-old-Melissa with her to Florida? Amelia has another chance at romance. Will she say yes? Major changes lie ahead for Lurina Materson Reynolds, and Grace is, as always, in the thick of things.

In the June Newsletter I will be announcing a photo contest for all you camera buffs. The winning photos--b/w and color will be shown on my web site and newsletter and prizes will be announced.

email: jmedlicott@mindspring.com

web: http://www.joanmedlicott.com