{"id":86486,"date":"2025-12-28T06:00:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T11:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/?p=86486"},"modified":"2025-12-22T13:01:22","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T18:01:22","slug":"from-the-editor-january-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"From the Editor:<\/strong> January 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time. \u201cThe year is going, let him go;\/Ring out the false, ring in the true,\u201d Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote. He suggested a lot of ringing in of this and ringing out of that in the poem, \u201cIn Memoriam, [Ring out, wild bells],\u201d but those words about letting go seem particularly poignant.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Gina Malone, Editor<\/p><\/div>\n

We are ringing in and celebrating some new: most excitedly, a brand-new member of our Laurel<\/em> family, August Castleberry Hatfield, son of associate editor Emma Castleberry and husband Joel Hatfield. Welcome to the world, dear little one! Emma is taking time off to enjoy new motherhood. She\u2019ll be back with us\u2014and full of delightful stories, no doubt\u2014in March. We wish her and Joel beautiful bonding time with little August.<\/p>\n

A new feature, \u201cThe Farmer\u2019s Table,\u201d debuts with this issue. Lyric East, an artist, writer and owner of Wild East Farm, in Marion, will treat us to a monthly column focusing on regional farmers and crops. This month, she writes about heirloom corn, a storage crop that has a history of nourishing Appalachian people through the lean winter months.<\/p>\n

Among those announcing new seasons and events for 2026 are Southern Highland Craft Guild, with craft-focused exhibitions, happenings and opportunities, including the special exhibition We Still Make Things: 100 Years of Craft and Culture at the John C. Campbell Folk School<\/em>; and New Morning Gallery, debuting a new series, beginning with Jewels of January,<\/em> that, monthly, features the work of two gallery artists.<\/p>\n

If you find the cold weather energizing, there are a few stories you won\u2019t want to miss as you plan winter outings\u2014or look forward to warmer days. Conserving Carolina has purchased the GreyRock property that completes 2,669 acres of protected wilderness adjoining Chimney Rock State Park and stretching from Lake Lure to the ridges above Hickory Nut Gorge. In Brevard, enjoy hiking and cycling the newly named Pisgah Passage, the loop route connecting multiple trails and downtown Brevard. Finally, these winter months offer training time for the Asheville Marathon & Half, set for March 21.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a little more inspiration for enjoying the time we are given, this from author and editor Marie Beynon Ray: \u201cBut we are not living in eternity. We have only the present moment, sparkling like a star in our hands\u2014and melting like a snowflake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Happy 2026, dear readers!<\/p>\n

Gina Malone can be reached at gina@thelaurelofasheville.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":41796,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-86486","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle"],"yoast_head":"\nFrom the Editor: January 2026 - The Laurel of Asheville<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"From the Editor: January 2026 - The Laurel of Asheville\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Laurel of Asheville\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/thelaurelofasheville\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-28T11:00:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"694\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"361\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Amy Pryor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AshevilleLaurel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@AshevilleLaurel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Amy Pryor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Amy Pryor\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13d76582350fe4093b37d2b69174af00\"},\"headline\":\"From the Editor: January 2026\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-28T11:00:43+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":454,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Lifestyle\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/\",\"name\":\"From the Editor: January 2026 - The Laurel of Asheville\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-28T11:00:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13d76582350fe4093b37d2b69174af00\"},\"description\":\"There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg\",\"width\":694,\"height\":361},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/lifestyle\\\/from-the-editor-january-2026\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"From the Editor: January 2026\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Laurel of Asheville\",\"description\":\"The Arts and Culture of Communities Across the Mountains\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelaurelofasheville.com\\\/updatestage\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13d76582350fe4093b37d2b69174af00\",\"name\":\"Amy Pryor\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4afbb9c963c7a0e8f027aafb31772d626615a03db2472868007f1e429a48cc2f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4afbb9c963c7a0e8f027aafb31772d626615a03db2472868007f1e429a48cc2f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4afbb9c963c7a0e8f027aafb31772d626615a03db2472868007f1e429a48cc2f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Amy Pryor\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"From the Editor: January 2026 - The Laurel of Asheville","description":"There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"From the Editor: January 2026 - The Laurel of Asheville","og_description":"There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.","og_url":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/","og_site_name":"The Laurel of Asheville","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/thelaurelofasheville","article_published_time":"2025-12-28T11:00:43+00:00","og_image":[{"width":694,"height":361,"url":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Amy Pryor","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@AshevilleLaurel","twitter_site":"@AshevilleLaurel","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Amy Pryor","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/"},"author":{"name":"Amy Pryor","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/#\/schema\/person\/13d76582350fe4093b37d2b69174af00"},"headline":"From the Editor: January 2026","datePublished":"2025-12-28T11:00:43+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/"},"wordCount":454,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg","articleSection":["Lifestyle"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/","url":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/","name":"From the Editor: January 2026 - The Laurel of Asheville","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg","datePublished":"2025-12-28T11:00:43+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/#\/schema\/person\/13d76582350fe4093b37d2b69174af00"},"description":"There\u2019s something energizing\u2014daunting, too, and, okay, maybe a tad weighty\u2014about embarking on a brand new year. A letting go of the old\u2014and, for many of us, 2025 was a difficult year across the board\u2014but a reckoning also with time.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/gina-sig-e1622723217600.jpg","width":694,"height":361},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/from-the-editor-january-2026\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"From the Editor: January 2026"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/#website","url":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/","name":"The Laurel of Asheville","description":"The Arts and Culture of Communities Across the Mountains","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/#\/schema\/person\/13d76582350fe4093b37d2b69174af00","name":"Amy Pryor","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4afbb9c963c7a0e8f027aafb31772d626615a03db2472868007f1e429a48cc2f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4afbb9c963c7a0e8f027aafb31772d626615a03db2472868007f1e429a48cc2f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4afbb9c963c7a0e8f027aafb31772d626615a03db2472868007f1e429a48cc2f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Amy Pryor"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86486","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86486"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86486\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":86488,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86486\/revisions\/86488"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41796"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86486"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86486"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86486"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}