Happy Easter! Because it occurs on the first Sunday following the first full moon of spring (called the Paschal Moon), the date on which Easter is observed can be as early as March 22, and as late as April 25. So April 20 is among the later of the possible dates, which should give everyone a pretty good chance of not having to hunt for Easter eggs in the snow, although there is certainly no guarantee of that.
When our kids were young, there was always both an indoor and an outdoor egg hunt at our house, and many of those outdoor hunts required boots and winter jackets. The Easter Bunny always left the kids a note to let them know how many eggs he had hidden around the yard, but, even so, I remember several times when I ran across an undiscovered plastic egg full of sticky jellybeans when I was mowing the lawn in May or June.
Even though the weather hasn’t been cooperating for a lot of spring activities, you can tell the seasons have changed by the number of events being planned. Here are some upcoming ones to add to your calendar:
Saturday, April 26, 9 a.m. to noon, West Parish Congregational Church, Bethel: Smile Fund Sale. Proceeds from this annual community yard sale pay for dentures for adults in the SAD44 area. Please drop off the following items anytime between April 18 and 24: Books, housewares, knickknacks, tools, gardening supplies.
Saturday, April 26, 2 p.m., First Universalist Church of West Paris: A Retrospective of a Musical Life, concert with singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist Davy Sturtevant. Davy relocated to western Maine from Pennsylvania 15 years ago and has toured and performed throughout much of the country. This concert will include some of his own favorite songs as well as fan favorites. Refreshments and a raffle drawing will be held following the concert. There is a suggested donation of $20. (Rescheduled from the original scheduled date in February.)
Wednesday, April 30: Opening day for the Swap Shop at the Greenwood/Woodstock Transfer Station. The shop will be open during regular transfer station hours. If you’d like to help, please contact Greenwood Town Manager Kim Sparks at greenwood.me.04255@gmail.com.
Thursday, May 1, 4:30-6 p.m., West Parish Congregational Church, Bethel: To Your Health will present its popular annual heart-health educational program. Dr. Daniel van Buren, Director of Cardiovascular Medicine at the New England Heart Institute at Androscoggin Valley Hospital in Berlin, N.H. will discuss recent advances in cardiovascular medicine. This is a free event, and all ages are welcome. (This program was postponed from the original February date.)
Saturday, May 3: Greenwood’s annual spring roadside cleanup day. Meet at the Town Office at 9 a.m. to be paired with a partner (if you wish) and receive a road assignment.
Sunday, May 4, 2 p.m., West Paris Public Library: Concert by Low Commotion, an ensemble of euphoniums (tenor tubas) and full-sized tubas directed by Jim Bennett of West Paris. Low Commotion performs several concerts each year at senior living centers, veterans homes, churches, historical societies, and libraries. This is a free event, and light refreshments will be served following the 45-minute concert.
Saturday, May 17, at 9 a.m. at the Locke’s Mills Legion Hall: Annual Greenwood Town Meeting. This is always a wonderful opportunity to socialize with neighbors and friends as well as participate in this quintessentially New England form of governance.
My new knee and I are getting used to each other—thank you to everyone who has inquired. Because I’m impatient and wanted to bounce back from surgery as quickly as possible, I was determined to get outside and walk as much as I could in the early weeks. While Eli the Wonder Pup was visiting last week, I took him for five walks on the Mann Road, increasing the distance each time, from a mile and a half to three miles.
I was pretty pleased with myself for being able to walk three miles just 23 days post-op. As it turned out, it might have been a little too much, too soon, as I had some swelling and a bit more pain later that day, but it didn’t last long. Since then, I’ve been walking shorter distances and spending more time on the exercise bike, and still doing physical therapy and home exercises, all of which is helping to increase the range of motion of my knee.
By the time you read this, I’ll be back from giving three book talks about Just Like Glass in three days, at three libraries, in Mount Vernon, Old Town, and Randolph, N.H. Next up is the Gloucester Writers Center in Gloucester, Mass. on May 8. If you have friends in that area, send them my way!
If you have news or events you’d like included here, email me at amy.w.chapman@gmail.com or call 207-890-4812. Remember that the next print edition of the Bethel Citizen will be published in two weeks, on Friday, May 2, but you can find this column online every Friday morning at amywchapman.com. Just click on the Locke’s Mills News tab, where you can also subscribe (for free, of course) to receive it by email.
“Easter is the soul’s first taste of spring.” – Richelle E. Goodrich