Love After Love
By Derek Walcott, 1971
The time will come
when, with elation
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror
and each will smile at the other’s welcome,
and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.
Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart
to itself, to the stranger who has loved you
all your life, whom you ignored
for another, who knows you by heart.
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,
the photographs, the desperate notes,
peel your own image from the mirror.
Sit. Feast on your life.
Art galleries are holding openings, wonderful movies are playing, restaurants are taking reservations, and friends are arriving. It is lovely, and shared moments are the feasts I crave, and walking when the sun starts to drop. In the gloaming, swallows were racing and chasing unseen insects over the sound. Pausing to sit on a boulder, we watched them drop and dart into their holes and moments later shoot out of the cliff and climb into the sky. Swallows are much more fun to watch than airplanes, we say before walking home.
Rebecca Gilbert reports baby goats, triplets, were born at Native Earth Teaching Farm on Tuesday. Call 508-645-3304 and schedule a visit with the goat kids.
Fellow Chilmarker Jennifer Burkin wrote that this summer she will be offering in-home children’s art classes Island-wide. She is a professional artist, and certified elementary art teacher. Families will have a choice of painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, crafts, and more. She can be reached at jenburkin@hotmail.com or at 617-750-1224.
Tito’s Handmade Vodka has funded a hoist for unloading heavy catch from fishing boats. To officially launch the new “vodka” boom, Martha’s Vineyard Preservation Trust will be hosting an unveiling ceremony on June 15 at 4 pm on the docks in Menemsha, Chilmark. They will speak to the impact this collaboration will have on the community, and will showcase the use of the equipment to kick off the fishing season.
The Chilmark Flea Market begins this Saturday, June 17, at 9 am. It will continue on Saturdays and Wednesdays, 9 to 2 pm, until after Labor Day. Stop by and say hi to your favorite vendors and Annette Anthony and crew
The annual Chilmark Church Children’s Fair is returning on Saturday, June 17, from 10 to noon, with fun activities and games for all. There will be arts and crafts projects, face painting, bouncy house, pony rides, and more! Free for all.
The Chilmark library offers Storytime every Saturday at 11 am. Toddle Time is on Thursdays, 11 to 11:30 am. Come join the library for stories, songs, and playtime. Let’s get together! Ideal for ages 2 to 3½.
Also at the library, a workshop Saturday, June 17, at noon: “When Little Bo Peep Fell Asleep: Rewriting the Nursery Rhyme.” Join Kate Feiffer, illustrator of “The Lamb Cycle,” for a hands-on writing workshop in which participants will rewrite a beloved nursery rhyme. This workshop is open to everyone. Please email tthorpe@clamsnet.org to preregister.
Kate Feiffer is the author of 11 children’s books, including “Henry the Dog with No Tail” and “Double Pink.” She is also an illustrator and doodler, and the event producer for Islanders Write. “The Lamb Cycle” is the first book she has illustrated. The workshop is free, sponsored by the Friends of the Chilmark Library.
On Tuesday, June 20, at 5 pm at the Chilmark library, Chilmark summer resident Alan Dershowitz will discuss his latest book, “Dershowitz on Killing: How the Law Decides.” Attendance is limited to the first 25 people. The talk is free, sponsored by the Friends of the Chilmark Library.
I laughed out loud while reading my friend Holly Nadler’s book “The Hobo Diaries: Down and Out on Martha’s Vineyard” over the weekend. I met her after she’d written the book. She is one of my most beloved fairy godmother friends, the kind of friend who is always welcome even without advance notice. The kind of friend who helps wash dishes and take out the trash. The kind of friend who comes with you to the dump, and with a laugh discovers that you need to hold the barrel tightly. The kind of friend who while you get a pole and rake, is preparing to climb in. The kind of friend who checks the contents of the refrigerator and the pantry shelves before heading to the store. The kind of friend who comes with the gear they need to play and books they want to read. The kind of friend who spends the hours you are working enjoying the Island and comes back in time for late afternoon visits.
Susan Markwica was this kind of friend, and her birthday is June 18. I deeply miss her. June 18 is also Father’s Day, and I miss him.
I will take Derek Walcott’s advice to sit and feast on life.
If you have any Chilmark Town Column suggestions, email Claire Ganz, cganz@live.com.