Spring is actually starting to spring here on M.V., finally. I got an hour or two in on Saturday morning laying in the sunshine at the beach before the clouds rolled in. It was delightful to have my feet back in the warm sand and listen to the water lapping the edge of the beach. It is a sound, just like the smell of Coppertone and Noxzema, that will always bring me back to my childhood, when my family and the Corwin clan would cram nine or 10 bodies, plus an umbrella and cooler, into a VW Bug and head to the beach. Jenny and I would sit in the “cubbie” in the way back of the car facing each other, and the rest of the gang would pile in. I can’t imagine how many laws we’d be breaking if we did such a thing nowadays. But it was the 70s. Things were different then.
The Edgartown Fire Department has to postpone their Museum Open House, which was scheduled for this weekend. They will let me know when they have a new date, and I’ll be sure to update you.
The Edgartown School’s annual March to the Sea is this Friday, May 27. The whole school will be decked out in red, white, and blue, carry lilacs or other flowers and march down to the town dock in an annual tradition that goes back to my childhood and beyond. Anyone know when the tradition actually started? While Memorial Day is actually a somber day to memorialize those we lost, this tradition does bring a bittersweet feel to the day, where the children rejoice in our nation and our heroes, learning about it for perhaps the first time. Last year, I had my students draw pictures and notes to veterans on a computer art program. Most of the kids chose to thank Ted Morgan, as he is their most obvious symbol of the day and its meaning. We bound the pictures together and presented them to Ted as a keepsake.
Please take time over the weekend to remember our veterans and heroes as well. Freedom isn’t free, and we have a lot of veterans, young and old, here on this Island. One way you can show your respect is by supporting the Carry the Fallen Ruck-March that takes place on Sunday, May, 29 from 6 am until 4 pm. Those taking part in this event march 26 miles around the Island, carrying 30 pounds of gear to symbolize the emotional weight that many veterans are carrying after war. Twenty-two veterans a day take their own lives, and events such as this are meant to draw attention to this heartbreaking statistic and put an end to veteran suicide. This will be the second year that Riley will take part in the event, and I’m very proud of him. To learn more about it, please go to Carry The Fallen MV, or Google “Carry the Fallen MV.” And if you see a bunch of men and women roaming the Island with flags and baggage, cheer them on.
Also, on Monday morning, there is the annual Memorial Day Parade, which starts at 10 am at the VFW in Vineyard Haven and marches to State Road and into the cemetery, where there will be wreath-laying ceremonies and speeches. Please come out and support the veterans. Let’s show them that we are grateful.
Happy birthday wishes go out to Emma Baldino on the 24th, Liza Dolby on the 27th, Melissa Aldeborgh and Steve Pogue on the 28th, and Molly Hargy, Bob Brown, and John McCarron on May 31. May you all celebrate in style and good health!