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My friend, and fellow former coach, Harold, writes so well — and with such a good recall — of the days of his yesteryears.

Those whose memories are not so dear are unfortunate. My hope for them is that those experiences do not affect their present and future in a negative way.

Now for my topic for today. It’s mostly about those cherished memories we have about a way of life, especially about some towns that seem to cling to the good things that add to the quality of just being.

Elizabeth Hudson, editor in chief of “Our State” magazine, always writes a point-of-view piece each issue. She’s really good.

In the August issue she writes of places and customs across our state that are special. She wrote “All around North Carolina, I see evidence of this grace and goodwill, of an outward focus, of humanity.” She was referencing someone specific, but applicable to other places and spaces and people.

In a portion of her ruminations, of a visit to Tarboro, Ms. Hudson wrote, “As I walked on, I was struck by the plethora of porches in this town. Every house I passed was fronted by an open porch, that bridge between inside and outside, an intentional communal space meant for family, for neighbors, and, perhaps most important, for strangers. Friendship begins there, right?” This is only a snippet of her piece.

Do you know what happened to cause so much less use of front porches, generally speaking, as opposed to many decades ago? Of course you do. Television and air conditioning. But not everyone eschews front porch time.

Ms. Hudson is a perceptively talented writer. You might want to find an August issue of “Our State” magazine and read her piece in its entirety.

You’ll even find mention of our town.

When this ubiquitous, invisible scourge finally goes away, let’s get together, on your porch or mine, and just enjoy being.

If it’s not too hot.

A deal?

APROPOS — “When your earth time comes to a close, what will you think has been most important in your life? What you have, or what you are. Your tangible assets, or the family and friends you have had along the way.”

— Anon