31 Jan 2021 EDITOR’S NOTE FEBRUARY 2021: Still Loving Life…

By Stefanie Brazile

Have you ever wished that you had a magic time machine that would allow you to travel back and forth in time to experience events firsthand? Travel back with me to the beginning of February 2020. When you picked up 501 LIFE and looked at the cover of a couple kissing in front of an Arkansas moon, you could not have imagined that a pandemic would be part of the near future. If you had a time machine, you might be tempted to travel back to that day and stay there!

It reminds me of childhood when magical thinking fueled my imagination. I’m not one who wishes to go back in time, but I am a person who chooses to be hopeful because there is still magic in the world, and it is not fueled by pixie dust, a wand or blowing out all your birthday candles. It is an unexpected change agent called love.

Each February, we celebrate and express love and that theme is again reflected on our cover. Pictured is a young couple, excited to hold each other’s hands, butterflies swarming in their stomachs. It’s the kind of excitement we’ve all experienced and that, ultimately, moved some of us to the altar.

I’m a firm believer in the verse “Love never fails.” It hangs in my home and my heart. In my lifetime, I have witnessed so many thoughtful acts which inspire me to be kinder, to be stronger and to be a better person. This past year has been a heartbreaker, but it also allowed us to show how much we cared about other people.

Those opportunities continue every day and it’s never too late to show love. I believe the stories in this issue will remind you that all is not lost. We have stories about newlywed love, how parents love their children, the love of donating a heart, a love of basketball, a love for service, art, music, reading, and a 95-year-old’s love for life.

Step out of that time machine, grab a mug of something warm and Celebrate Greater Central Arkansas within the pages of 501 LIFE!