Tomorrow will be a red-letter day here at Maples at the Sonatas. Actually, make that a red-box day, according to my calendar. But however you highlight it, the day will be significant.

Tomorrow is Turnover Day, the moment when our community takes its next step toward completion. At a meeting tomorrow, our builder, Jamie Wilcox, will officially turn over the homeowners association to us, the homeowners.

As is customary with construction, the builder remains in charge of the HOA until the community is approximately 75 percent built out. We have reached that point, and now some of the responsibility shifts from the builder to the homeowners.

The first step in our new independence will be meeting tomorrow to elect five people to serve on our first Board of Directors. The board will assume responsibility for overseeing our finances, making and enforcing community rules, maintaining our property, and more. But they will not have free rein. The community will still be bound by our declaration, which, if you are unfamiliar with the term, is similar to a constitution.

So, yes, tomorrow will be a landmark day. But no one should expect to wake up Tuesday and find a whole different Maples. If it snows (highly unlikely this winter), our streets, driveways, and sidewalks will still be plowed. Other services overseen by our property management company will continue uninterrupted. We will still pay association dues. Our social activities will go on as usual. Wilcox will continue building and selling homes until the community is finished.

•••••

I guess this is a time to celebrate, but, honestly, I don’t much feel like it. What I do feel is….

Nostalgic. I keep replaying six and a half years of memories and get…

Nostalgic. I remember how there were only 25 or so of us when I moved here. And now we have grown to 125 residents. But I remember those we lost through death and those who, for various reasons, moved to other cities or states. And I miss them and I’m…

Nostalgic. I remember how, at the time I signed my contract, I believed there was only one thing that kept the Maples from being perfect. I would miss the property management company and our rep, Suzanne, from my former community. And then, at my first meeting here, before I even closed, Jamie announced that he had hired that same company to manage here. And it was great, except soon Suzanne retired, and I missed her and felt…

Nostalgic. And then, because of my past experience on a board and with the management company, Jamie asked me to be Resident Trustee for the Maples. And then I asked him if we could form an advisory committee so it wouldn’t be just me. And it was fun for quite a while, but then I burned out and stepped down. But looking back, I get…

Nostalgic. And I have about 50 more examples, but I am going to spare you from any more of my ramblings. I’ll go to the meeting tomorrow, and I’ll appreciate it for the milestone that it is, and I’ll smile, but inside I’ll be wondering why life can’t ever stay the same. Yes, I’ll be…

Nostalgic.