I placed my phone against this tree to take a photo. I know it well, just like the magnolia in the courtyard. Seasons change, leaves fall and return, years and people pass, while some things stay familiar. I like that kind of constancy. Growth does not mean becoming someone else. I have changed, learned, and understood myself better, but I still know who I am, what I love, what I want, and what I do not want. Love can remain too, even when its hold on us fades. We carry it as part of our story without letting it write the rest. There is a difference between being grounded and being stuck. 🌳