Perhaps I'm feeling a little melancholy with my year as President coming to an end but I was thinking about the first article I wrote as a new District Officer seven or eight years ago.  Basically, the message was about blooming where you are planted.  I wrote about moving away from a larger town and out of the house my daughter was raised in. I loved everything about that house and the memories my family created there through the years. It had a small but beautiful garden and I was cleaning it all out for the last time. I spent the afternoon taking some bulbs and tubers and seeds of plants that I wanted to take with me to my new home. When I was all done digging and raking I could smell the dark, damp earth. It was bare and empty and I felt a pang of uncertainty. I just sat on my knees wondering about the future.  Then I spied a bright yellow coreopsis blooming brightly at the property line - it had found a happy place to thrive under the protection of the neighbor's hedge in the gravel of the alley way! Somehow it had escaped my grasp and was now laughing at me.  It brought a smile to my face and instantly a message to my heart that I had an opportunity to bloom somewhere else too. Despite the challenges that were likely in a new environment I could bloom if I adapted. I wrote that our chapters could do the same. Despite the limitations or challenges in their communities they could thrive and bloom! 

The daisy that I saw during my run was a reminder that I was about to begin another new chapter in my life - and I can continue to bloom!  And it reminded me of my words from that first article about sharing the bounty from our Chapter's gardens with our communities.  Conditions aren't always perfect for fundraising or getting new members. But if we adapt ourselves - we may be able to grow in the most unexpected ways! By keeping our minds and hearts open to the possibilities we may increase our opportunity to grow.

The last 8 years have been a wonderful journey. I've always had good intentions but I've fallen and failed many times along the way.  It's not an easy journey by any means but worth every dirtied knee and thorn just to relish the ultimate beauty and persistence of the yellow rose that represents Psi Iota Xi.

Theodore Roosevelt said "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."  Are our chapters doing everything they can, with what they have, where they are?   Those who have thrived know the formula - and those who are struggling might benefit by making some adaptions.  It has been an honor and privilege to serve you as best as I could during my journey on National Council.  

Thank you

Marcia Mohre