Suzan Bellincampi
It is a great story, one that has everything: conceit, vanity, envy, brutality, monsters, and family deception. There is a bright side, though, and for some characters in the story, a happy, fairy-tale ending.
The bright side is the luminous shine of the stars. It is these stars that make up the constellations of a royal family that inhabit the fall night sky and give us this epic drama.
There is something in the woods creepier than the ghosts, goblins, and witches that have been wandering around our neighborhoods.
This creeper won’t scare you (unless you have allergies — more on that later.) More likely it will delight you with its brilliant blaze of crimson color and its forest acrobatics, leaping from plant to plant. Virginia creeper is the five-leafed climbing wonder of the woods.
At night I see stars and by day see horses. Felix Neck (and the Vineyard, by extension) is a good place to be.
It is not that the stars shine brighter here; you can see them from your home no matter where you are. It is seahorses that might be harder to find.
There are some things that I would expect a youngster to bring home from preschool. Among these would be drawings to hang up on the fridge, simple arts and crafts projects, and even perhaps a cold caught from another child.
What I wouldn’t expect is what Hunter Meader brought home to his family — a colorful, voluptuous spider. Hunter did not find the spider himself; but since no one in his class could identify this arachnid, this budding naturalist took on the identification task himself.
Chloris is having her last hurrah and it is quite a party.
No, Chloris is not a bride-to-be during the busy fall Vineyard wedding season having a bachelorette party in Oak Bluffs. She is the Greek goddess of flowers and while she has given us a showy summer and fall, her reign of blossoms is coming to an abrupt end.
Don’t spare the rod.
While I am not an advocate of corporal punishment, I am an admirer of the plentiful goldenrod blooming all over the Island.
Goldenrod has gotten a pretty bad rap from those who think that they are allergic to it, and from advertisers who try to convince us that we are all allergic to it; but in reality goldenrod deserves credit and not blame. It is in fact windborne ragweed that is responsible for most allergies and not insect-pollinated goldenrod.