5411-R1_CIC_January2018_Calendar_Web

Marty’s Memories: Distant Sounds by Marty Trower

I t’s never the expected but the subtle images, the sounds, and the smells that take you back to amoment that reminds you that you have lived a while and taken it in. I say this because I feel it now and know that it must be the same for others who have spent time on this island. I remember one quintessential incident—just such a small, almost static moment— that has stayed with me. Snow had begun to fall the way it always does, especially in the beginning: silently and subtly. There was a graying sky and a few white motes were bumping into each other, but no boom of thunder, no splatter on the roof and window panes. As I stood outside in the Chebeague schoolyard with the young school children at recess, the flakes began to fall

closer together, coming down faster and starting to fill in the bare brown places. The kids were ramped up, their squeals getting higher as the snow gathered on the plastic slide making the ride down faster and the landing on the ground softer, like falling into whipped cream. I became aware of a distant sound, repeating at regular intervals, almost a blurred hum. It was soothing, and strangely, I seemed to feel its slight vibration in my nose. It was almost a harmonica note, issuing at the same interval of time, always remote, never getting closer. When I realized it was the repetitive bleat of a fuzzy far-off foghorn, I was wrapped in the comfort of knowing exactly where I was, listening to the heartbeat of the island.

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Lawn Mowing, Bush Hogging, Wood Chipping, Stump Grinding, Brush Removal, Rototilling, Driveway Grading, Snow Removal, and more...

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JANUARY 2018 CHEBEAGUE ISLAND COUNCIL CALENDAR