As I write this I am feeling absolutely jaunty. Mike and I have finished and mailed in our taxes two days ahead of the April 15 deadline. A first for us. We are usually struggling sleepily into the night of April 14, papers everywhere across our dining room table, wondering where some critical piece of documentation has disappeared to. Not this year. It may be a small step, two days early, but maybe next year we will get it done even earlier. At this rate, by the time we are 80 we may even send them in in March.
It has been a beautiful week. Although the wind has been chilly, it is warm in the sun. I have been enjoying my morning coffee outside, wearing shorts and a tee-shirt already. We had a garter snake sunning himself in the backyard yesterday. Pinkletinks are noisily proclaiming themselves in the ponds. Bob and Bobette have returned to the Mill Pond, preparing for the arrival of their cygnets. Daffodils are blooming everywhere along with carpets of blue chionodoxa and scilla. Epimediums and violets are coming up. The pear trees at the cemetery have huge buds ready to burst. Everyone in town seems cheerful, as the temperate weather provides a welcome break from cold and snow, and the hot, humid days ahead.
A reminder to check for ticks They are out.
Sunday evening Mike and I were invited to an early seder at Linda and Gaston Vadasz’s winter rental house. We have celebrated Passover with the Cabots for several years and a poignant part of the evening is when Nicole comments on how much she misses her parents. So it was wonderful to be sitting around their table this year with Linda and Gaston presiding over the seder, beaming at their granddaughters, telling stories about their years in Hungary. Next year we will be sitting around the table in their new, year-round dining room, in the apartment they are building onto Ben and Nicole’s house. Something very special to look forward to.
It was also Palm Sunday, so lots of gardeners were out at the three garden centers in town — Heather Gardens, Vineyard Gardens, and Middletown Nursery. All were decked out with lots of spring bulbs and pansies, early perennials, and gifts for all their visitors.
Next week will be Easter. The West Tisbury Church has planned a Tenebrae service and communion this Thursday evening at 7:30. “This service concludes in darkness and silence as we remember the story of Jesus’s betrayal, trial, and crucifixion.” There will be a sunrise service at 5:30 Easter Sunday morning at Ann Nelson’s. Directions: turn onto Littlefield Lane across from the Polly Hill Arboretum, bear left on Edson Forest Lane, follow the road as it bends to the right. At 10 am there will be an Easter service with the Sunday School, held at the Ag Hall, and followed by an Easter Egg Hunt. Everyone is welcome to attend all of these holiday services.
The West Tisbury Library has planned a Spring Egg Hunt at the library on Saturday, April 19, beginning at 10 am SHARP (librarian’s emphasis.) There will be eggs filled with jelly beans hidden around the library, so come and explore. There will be no crafts this Saturday and the library will be closed on Sunday.
Carolina Cooney will be leading a Graphic Novel Book Club at the library beginning Monday, May 5, at 7 pm. The first book, “Watchmen,” written by Allan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons, is available at the circulation desk. Sign up and pick up your copy of the book to prepare for the May meeting. Carolina is an online instructor of History of Comics at The Academy of Art University and a frequent exhibitor at San Diego Comic-Con International. Her husband is comic artist Dan Cooney. They live in town with their two young sons and Carolina’s grandmother, Jean Wexler.
Congratulations to everyone who won re-election in our recent town election last week, also to Maria McFarland, newly-elected to serve on the Board of Assessors.
I want to tell Katie Carroll how much I have enjoyed her column these past years. She is a wonderful writer, hand-picked by my dear friend Jackie Sexton when Jackie retired from writing the Chilmark column. Jackie felt that Katie was well-positioned to know what was happening in Chilmark and would tell her town’s stories with affection and care. She has done so more than admirably. I will miss her weekly columns, her observations of the seasons passing, her accounts of the events of her fellow residents as well as visitors. Thank you, Katie.
Got West Tisbury news? Contact Hermine Hull here.
