Since 2000 I have attended RWA’s national conference whenever my life and our family’s Navy travels have allowed. The passage of time has never been more evident to me than this year, this day, this moment. Maybe it’s my impending empty nest in just over a year, or my, ahem, maturation process, but I realize that relationships formed over the course of these conferences have become the sparkling diamonds in what is often a tough yet rewarding process.