I am writing this essay on the evening of my twenty-fourth birthday.

What does that have to do with the fate of Apricotpie? Probably nothing; I just thought I’d mention it. Yet, I must say, that during my birthday and the days leading up to it, I thought much on Apricotpie.

The first thing I heard about the closing of Apricotpie was my father coming into my room and breaking the news to me. I quickly checked my email and found that the news was true. I was immediately preoccupied with figuring out the best way to handle the situation. I waited a couple of days before I posted any comments. I observed how people were reacting. I was intrigued – I’d say seventy to eighty percent of us accepted the news rather calmly, thanking Ben (rightly so!) for the past ten wonderful years (of which I’ve only experienced two-and-a-half) and immediately adopting an air of resignation and finality. There were a handful of us, but not many, who were protesting and pleading that this could not be the end.

So, where am I on this?

First of all, I am calm. At least, I hope I am coming across that way. Perhaps I am not so calm on the inside.

Secondly, I am ready to accept the end of our beloved Apricotpie website if there is no way we can keep it. And in that case I am committed to keeping our community together, and in that spirit I applaud what Mary has done in creating the Apricotpie Outpost (www.apricotpieoutpost.blogspot.com). I urge everyone on Apricotpie who hasn’t already to join us there. If you haven’t read Mary’s post about the Outpost, read it. Ultimately, Apricotpie isn’t a website; it’s a community of friends. We’ll end up moving, as Mary put it, “from a castle to a cabin,” but if we are committed we can still stay together and carry on the legacy that Ben is leaving us.

And yet (and thirdly), if there is any chance that Apricotpie as we know it can be saved, I am committed to saving it. Even though ultimately we are a community, the specific website itself plays an enormous roll. We have called this place home, some of us for a decade. We have laughed together here, cried together here, joked, occasionally argued, and forgiven each other here. We have made so many memories together, memories which we can go back and look up, just by looking at our old posts. Much of that will be lost if Apricotpie goes.

I do not know yet if there is anything that can be done. I hope there is; but if not, these things happen. We can still move on together into the future and make it a better place, with God’s help.

On another note (and most of you probably knew this already), I have a blog, www.jimmyboone.blogspot.com. I will eventually have everything I’ve ever posted on Apricotpie posted there. Find me there, and if you like, follow my blog; also if you like, I’ll be happy to follow yours.

Lastly, thank you, once again, Ben, for the ten years you’ve given us at Aprictopie. And thank you for giving me the honor of being a monthly writer. It has meant a lot to me.

Whatever the future is for us at Apricotpie, I remain optimistic that many good years still lie ahead of us, even if we have to say goodbye to the website we love.