Neverwinter Forest Bullet train to Iowa.

You do have your whole life ahead of you, as they say. And you can do anything you want with it, Towhee concurred. I consider myself semi-retired. I like looking after and teaching the younger generations, even if they’re not necessarily my progeny. I’m hoping my brother, Phox, gets to have more kids this coming year, and I guess there’s always the chance I’ll have more. But I feel pretty retired from that whole shebang too.

Speaking of retiring, Towhee felt herself growing sleepy. The warm water was relaxing but she actually had a bit of a headache brewing. She would soon need to crawl out of the water, deal with the unpleasantness of drying off and maybe find someplace to nap. She drifted toward the edge of the pool, trying to prepare herself.

And I still need to decide if I’m going to winter somewhere and, if so, where? I have too many choices, which is a good problem to have, I guess.