August 2009
Old Home Day Issue
Volume 26, No.3
CENTER POND REFLECTIONS By Phil Brown ometimes I wonder why I don’t spend every second on a pond – on this pond. Maybe the drudgery of loading and unloading the boat to and from the car and the hassle of annoying mosquitoes around my eyes and ears as I fumble with knots has something to do with it. But these things, and everything else in life, are instantly left behind on the first stroke of smooth weightlessness as my skiff glides pondside. I drift past underwater lilies turning green and reaching skyward, young and energetic groups of bass in search of prey, and hoards of placid midges skimming the water’s glassy surface. A broad-winged hawk hunts patiently near the water’s edge for one of the plentiful toads that are trilling. Each warty stalwart stands still as a statue, sitting tall on folded legs and faces the water’s edge so it can make a quick escape when I – or the hawk – drift too close. So serious in appearance and mechanical in call, these denizens of early summer cast an eerie sound across the pond. Their lengthy, high-pitched tones are such a stark contrast to the melodious and joyful harmony of birdsong that surrounds – sweet sounding warblers, tanagers, grosbeaks, and vireos. I may have never noticed so many toads before; it must be the peak of breeding season based on their numbers and the intensity of their expressions. Above the water, dragonflies dart like tiny helicopters, scanning the pond’s surface for insects, which are hopefully the
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numerous black flies and mosquitoes that hamper us on shore. These aren’t a bother out here, though. The light breeze that accompanies my kayak is enough to keep them down and closer to my neighbors on shore and it keeps me cool enough in the still high late afternoon mid-June sun. But wait, I catch myself, and realize why I’m really out here today. I almost forget the task at hand, but I’m pulled back to my work. Its mission involves p o ssib ly the m ost strikin g an d representative life form of the pond – the ‘Great Northern Diver’, or Common Loon. I’m reassured of its continued presence by the bellowing call of a male loon – the sound of the North Country that we’re all so lucky to be surrounded by from time to time. There, in the center of Center Pond, it sits atop the glassy surface – on which beads of water float atop its surface – the loon’s handsome black and white plumage blending in surprisingly well with dark water and bright sun glare. (continued on page 6)
NELSON Old Home Days
This year Old Home Sunday will be on August 9, starting off the week of events, ending with the big festivities on Old Home Day, Saturday, August 15. See schedule on pages 4 & 5.
SHEILA SWETT IS HOME DAY SPEAKER ur Old Home Day speaker this year w ill be Sheila Swett Thompson of West Swanzey, New Hampshire. Sheila is the author of the much acclaimed memoir of her grandfather, Perley: the True Story of a New Hampshire Hermit. Even if you didn’t grow up in Nelson, Stoddard, or Sullivan, it is likely that you have heard of Perley Swett. Sheila’s book has given us a much greater insight into the enigmatic life of the “Hermit of Taylor Pond.” Sheila said of writing the story of her grandfather, Perley Swett, “Originally I had planned to only write a ‘family story’ about Perley because no one in the family really knew his whole story. When I realized how extensive that story was and how (continued on page 3)
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