LifeLife is like a rocky road,
Uneven and unsure,
With ruts and stones everywhere,
Like the problems we must endure.
But if you look so very close,
You will begin to see
The answers to your questions
On what your life could be.
It shows how you can clear away
The path on which you tread,
Put all; your troubles far behind
And see happiness ahead.
So, walk on down life’s rocky road,
Believing all the while
You’re solving your problems one by one
And conquering each troubled mile.
For, at the end of every day,
When you lay your head to rest,
You’re feeling good about yourself,
Knowing you’ve done your best.
Priscilla Louise Waite
Fighting to Lower Energy Costs
By Rep. Christopher G. Donovan, Connecticut House Majority Leader
At the State Capital in Hartford, we are fighting to lower energy costs for you. The recent increases in electric rates and gasoline prices have created serious problems for many Connecticut residents. Although these problems are not limited to our state, we in the state legislature are determined to find solutions.
Long before the current legislative session started on January 3rd, legislators have been working hard to find ways of addressing the rising energy costs. Over the summer, we held a series of “Energy Summits” where experts in the field shared their ideas and recommendations. Since then, we have created task forces and put those ideas into legislation that we will vote on over the coming weeks.
However, the energy crisis that we are facing in Connecticut is extremely broad and complicated. During the Presidencies of Reagan and Bush, the federal government made it harder for states to control their own energy costs, so we are forced to work with national policies that do not have the same goals as we do. In addition, predictions of the international market indicate that the price of oil will only continue to rise.
Here in Connecticut we are looking at a combination of several short and long-term solutions. We must consider energy efficiency and conservation initiatives, alternative sources for fuel like renewable energies, and changes to the market structure and contracting process. The goal behind all of these reforms is to ensure that rates to not continue to rise at such a rapid rate.
One of our toughest tasks will be to reduce our dependency on oil, our main source of fuel, while we ensure stability to a social climate that demands increased energy production. But we are committed to fighting for you. Early in the session we will enact some reforms aimed at lowering rates as soon as possible and we will continue to work on solutions for the future as the energy issue evolves.
A BIT O’ BLARNEY
Inspired by the March breezes, Danny and Alice gathered narrow slats, paper and glue to create a kite. Alice painted a big smiling face on it, and Danny tied on a long green tail in honor of the day: St. Patrick’s Day.
With a big ball of string they eagerly set the kite soaring. A friendly breeze caught the kite and carried it high aloft into the bright blue sky. A sudden strong gust of wind snatched the string from Danny’s grasp, breaking it and carrying the kite higher and higher until it was just a small speck, far away.
“Oh, where am I going?” wondered Kite.
“With me,” said the wind. “We’ll sail away and see the world together. Just call me “Windy” and watch the world go by. Look down now at the treetops and then ahead at the big blue ocean.” So on they sailed—the wind twirling Kite in circles and playfully fumbling it as they went on further. When they blew into a soft looking pillow of a cloud, Kite moaned about how wet he was getting, but he was excited by the colors that sparkled all around him. Windy assured him, “Don’t worry about the wet clouds, they are full of rain and it’s the sun’s job to make rainbows in the raindrops, aren’t the colors lovely? And the sun will dry you off soon.” And it did.
Soon Windy pointed to a green mitten shape and the rainbow was bending toward it. Kite asked, “What is it? It’s getting bigger the closer we come to it.:
Windy answered, “That’s Ireland, and the green are shamrocks. I’m going to put you down now, but I’ll come back later to fly you home. What I want you to do is get a bunch of those shamrocks for me. I’m off now, see you soon!”
Kite looked all around but could see no green rocks. So it bounced along to a big rock and tapped on it, hoping it would be of help. Suddenly, a small person dressed in green peered from behind the rock and wondered, “Who’s that knocking at my home?” When he saw that it was just a kite, he came out to look at it and was quite startled to hear it ask for help in finding the green rocks for Windy. After a hearty laugh, Paddy Leprechaun introduced himself and said, “First tell me your story---I’ve never talked to a kite before.”
Kite began, “It’s really been a most unusual day! Just this morning Danny and Alice created me for St. Patrick’s Day fun, but Windy came by and grabbed me! We’ve had a wonderful journey and I’ve learned a lot. He’ll soon be back to take me home. But first I must get some shamrocks for him. He said they were green and I don’t see any green rocks!”
After another hearty laugh, Paddy gathered a handful of the plants they were standing among and said; “These are the shamrocks! I’ll tie them onto your bright green tail. Indeed this has become a more magical day than you know! We Leprechauns are honor-bound to give a gold coin to anyone who sees us on this special day. You certainly fooled me into showing myself!”
“Oh, really? And may I have two coins? One for Danny and one for Alice, because they’re the ones to thank for this magical day.” So Paddy went around the big rock to the hidden pot of gold coins that he was secretly hoarding, and selected two shiny coins, then he wrapped he wrapped them in the kite’s tail and fastened it very securely.
Paddy barely had time to hide beneath his rock before Windy came swooshing back to quickly lift the shamrock-laden kite into the air. Windy was very pleased with the shamrocks and enjoyed the delightful story that Kite told him while he was being swiftly carried to the very home of Danny and Alice. Gently placing Kite against a tree in their backyard, Windy took a few of the shamrocks and then breezily waved goodbye.
What a surprise Alice and Danny had when they came down the next morning for breakfast and looked out of the window! They quickly dashed out to their kite and their excitement grew greater as more surprises met their gaze! But Kite just smiled its painted smile and said nothing.
Dorothy Adair Gonick
NATURE AS A MIRROR
IVY
Glossy ivy vine,
Potted on my windowsill.
Nature brought inside.
Recently while my 11-year old granddaughter, Ivy Ciaburri, was painting this illustration, I looked for information about the vine, Ivy. We found that “Ivy” is a generic name for any vine that climbs or creeps as it grows. There are different botanical names for each variety of the vine.
The leaves of the Common or English Ivy are a glossy, waxy green and have five points on each leaf. The flowers are quite inconspicuous. It clings to shady walls and sides of buildings from cottages to castles with its fine air roots. The Boston or Japanese Ivy has three points on each leaf and it too, often covers the shady sides of buildings. When the ivy vines entwine a tree for support, there is the possibility that as the tree grows in girth, the vine will strangle it.
The Virginia Creeper, has five leaflets, and is often mistaken for Poison Ivy that has three shiny green leaflets. The oil in the poison ivy leaves often cause itching and blisters on our skin, if we touch it. All ivies turn scarlet and brighten pathways in the fall. On our hikes through the countryside, the scarlet leaves warn us to beware, “Leaflets three, Let it be.”
There is also Ground Ivy, otherwise called gill-over-the-ground or Creeping Charlie. This creeping ivy has rounded leaves and purple or blue flowers. As it creeps along the ground, it sends rootlets into the soil anchoring the vine. It was imported many years ago and was made into cough syrup and ale. At one time, gardeners grew it, but today we usually do not welcome it in our gardens.
The Bittersweet vine grows in moist areas. The tiny flowers become clusters of poisonous berries in the fall. Their green color changes to yellow and finally open to expose the crimson seed. The orange-red Berries remain on the vine stems through the winter and are favored for winter bouquets and decorations. The twigs of the bittersweet vine produce a liquid that is used in medicine to relieve pain and treat skin diseases.
These ivy vines with varied uses and characteristics have weak and flexible stems that need support; otherwise they creep along the ground. There are times in our lives when we need support, ‘less our spirits wither, seemingly in the dust. There are many lovely blooms, such as wisteria, morning glory, honeysuckle, clematis that we admire that depend on sturdy support to reach their glory. It seems as if God has allowed all things (even us) to lack something, but nevertheless, all things have a purpose in life that adds richness to the world.
To all my friends on Simpson Avenue, this one’s for you.
I moved to Wallingford in January of 1982, and lived at Knollwood Apartments at that time. I moved to Simpson Avenue in June of 1990, and it was the greatest neighborhood I ever lived in. I was fortunate enough to live in the same house for almost 15 years. I knew a lot of people on that street, and most everyone was very friendly and liked to chat and visit, especially during the warmer months. People routinely came from across the street to sit on the porch and talk with my landlady, who was 80 years old when I moved in upstairs. She had moved into the house sometime in the 1960s, and she and her husband used to have parties outside, I am told, and her husband would offer his friends homemade wine. One of my neighbors further down the street remembered those gatherings and said he had good memories of those days. I think Simpson Avenue at one time was predominately an Italian neighborhood, and some of the people had been on that street for a very long time.
The neighbors who lived across the street, Henry and Olga, lived in their house for 45 years, I believe. Maybe longer. Olga spoke fluent Italian and always conversed with Gracia in Italian, pausing to translate for me now and then. I tried to learn Italian by enrolling in a course offered by Adult Ed so I could communicate better, but I just couldn't master it at all. Tony, who remembered the parties, had lived on Simpson for a long time, too. I frequently had lunch with him and his good friend Max over at Pajor’s.
We had our share of excitement, if you want to call it that, on Simpson. Before I moved there, a house was blown up due to a gas leak just a few houses down from Gracia’s house. Fortunately no one was injured. One weekend a pipe burst in an upstairs bathroom of my next-door neighbor and flooded the house while they were away for a couple of days. Laurie, Gary, and their children spent several months in a motel while the house was rebuilt. I watched their three sons grow up until they eventually moved to Bayberry. And then I had new neighbors, a couple from Maine. One night, around 1:00 a.m., a house across the street caught fire. I was one of two people who called it in. Gary was the other. Half of the neighborhood came outside to watch the firemen fighting the fire and protecting homes close by. The fire caused some vinyl siding to melt on one home next door. Some of my neighbors brought out glasses of water for the firemen. When the tenants fled the fire through the front door, they left the door open, which caused a big updraft, so the house pretty much burned to the ground. Thankfully no one was hurt. And then a new house was constructed in its place.
Pete and Sue have lived next door on the other side of Gracia's house for a long time also. And Betty and Ray lived across the street for years and years, raised their family there, and I got to know their granddaughter Taylor fairly well because Betty took care of her during the day before Taylor was old enough to go to school. And then there was Dick and his sister, Carol, who lived down the street a short distance. And of course I got to know everyone's pets. Many of Gracia's children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren came to visit, and at least one of her clan would visit on a daily basis, and I got to know every one of them, some better than others. Gracia made me lunch once a week, on Thursdays, for at least 10 years. She would bring me the best minestrone soup I have ever tasted, and sometimes pasta with three fabulous meatballs (always three), and once in a while she would bring me manicotti, which was unbelievably good. She was a fantastic cook. Almost every day she would invite me in for a cup of her espresso, which was out of this world. We learned to communicate a lot with sign language, let me tell you. I never understood how she could figure out what was going on with the soap operas she watched in the afternoon. I sat with her and watched Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy, but could never figure out why she enjoyed those shows so much. I think, perhaps, she understood English better than she led me to believe.
Things change in a period of 15 years. One year Henry broke his hip, but he made a full recovery, and it wasn’t too long before he was out mowing his grass again and raking leaves. A few years later he passed on. Coincidentally, Olga also broke one of her hips and made a full recovery. She stayed in her house for a couple more years, but then moved to Silver Pond. Dear Tony, a wonderful old Italian guy, passed on also. Pete, who owned a business in town and ran it into his 80s, eventually sold it. The couple from Maine moved away, and another young couple moved in, along with their cat, Nadia. There were many, many changes over the 15 years I was there, which is a relatively short time compared to others on the street, and I am sure there are lots and lots of stories that could be told about the neighborhood back in the old days.
I did love Simpson Avenue, which had quite a charm really. People took pride in their gardens, and Gracia had several, which she tended to daily during the warm months until she was about 93, maybe slightly younger than that, but approximately. I was totally amazed at her ability to tend to a wide variety of flowers in front of the house and on the sides of the house, but also to take care of her tomatoes, beans, and other vegetables in a garden waaaaaayyyyy out back. The first summer I was there, I offered to lift a bushel basket of tomatoes for her and take it to the house, ho, ho. I could barely budge it. She carried it with no problem. A rather amazing woman.
And then a sad day came when Gracia felt she could no longer stay in her house, and she went to live with her daughters. The house was put up for sale, and when it was purchased, I was told the new owners were not interested in having any tenants, so I had to move. I only live a short distance from there on a parallel street, but it ain't Simpson Avenue, I can tell you that. What a difference a street can make. Actually, it's the neighbors who make up the neighborhood, and the people where I live now just have nothing in common, I guess. I hardly know a soul on this street. I have wonderful memories of Simpson Avenue, and I am grateful I had the opportunity to live there as long as I did. Oh, and by the way, Gracia is still alive. She will be 98 in July!
Barbara Sherburne
barndt49@yahoo.com
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