The autumn equinox is this weekend, officially marking the change from summer into autumn. I have watched the light changing in my woods and felt the cool, crisp mornings and nights outside and through our open windows. Even though things don’t quiet down the way they used to, I still have an autonomic response to autumn, a sense of slowing time, peaceful, emptying out, of endless days, of freedom.
The Derby has started. Beaches will be busy with anglers through the next month. Good fishing to you all.
Saturday, Sept. 21, will be an occasion to remember Hunter Moorman, who died this past summer. The interment will begin at 2 pm at the West Tisbury cemetery, followed by a gathering at his and Leslie’s home at 106 Panhandle Road.
Also on Saturday, come to the Oak Bluffs library to learn about preparing for a hurricane or severe winter storm. The program is hosted by the Oak Bluffs Climate and Energy Committee and the Dukes County Emergency Management Association. It will run from 1:30 to 3 pm, in-person and on Zoom. For information, visit oakbluffsma.gov/178/Energy-Committee or call 508-693-9433.
Closer to home, Dave Kish will present one of his jazz documentaries with a discussion to follow at 3 pm on Saturday at the West Tisbury library. Other library special events include a meeting of the Death Cafe with Heather Massey and Joyce Maxner at 2:30 pm on Sunday. Monday at 5:30 pm, the LGBTQ+ Book Club will meet to discuss “Wild Geese” by Soula Emmanuel. Sign up and order a copy of the book at wt_mail@clamsnet.org.
Kara Taylor’s Gallery is showing a collection of fabric, mixed media, and concrete on wood panels by Molly Finkelstein. “Fragments” will remain on view through Oct. 14. Gallery hours are Saturday and Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm, or by appointment. Call 508-332-8171.
Mitchell Gordon’s Turpentine Gallery has a collection of Steve Lohman’s wire sculptures on display alongside Gordon’s oil paintings. Call 508-560-1141 for hours or look for the “open” sign on State Road.
West Tisbury painter Rez Williams and woodcut printmaker Ruth Kirchmeier are among the featured artists in “Human/Nature: Art and Conservation on Martha’s Vineyard,” the newly-opened exhibition at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum. It focuses on “art, history, and environmental stewardship.” The show will be on view through Jan. 12, 2025.
Tara Whiting-Wells took a long weekend trip to Boston to play tourist with her husband, Peter, her father, Dan Whiting, and his wife, Annie. They stayed at the Mariner’s House, which is the Boston Seamen’s Bethel. They all enjoyed the duck boat tour, especially Dan; veterans are invited to sign their names and write a message on the boat’s ceiling, and he did. Lots of good food, good company, and good humor made for an excellent time away.
Happy to have them back home. Tara has lots to do before a special town meeting in October and the presidential election on Nov. 5.
If you have any West Tisbury Town Column suggestions, email Hermine Hull, hermine.hull@gmail.com.
