Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens Archives

Maine Musings: Reading & More

August 18, 2024August 18, 2024 JWF Leave a comment

Here are two books I read recently. One is literary fiction by an author I know from previous works. The other is a romance which is clever, humorous, and just fun. The Chief Penguin and I also made our second visit to the botanical garden this week, so I offer a few comments on it and their new sculptures.

WAR’S AFTERMATH: GRITTY, TRAUMATIC, ISOLATING

Night Watch by Jayne Anne Phillips (my summer list)

Jayne Anne Phillips won the Pulitzer Prize for Night Watch, a post Civil War novel set in West Virginia. The events take place in 1864 and 1874 as various chapters focus on different characters. Principals are 12-year-old ConaLee who ministers to her catatonic mother, Eliza; Dearbhla, their older neighbor and sometime protector; and Night Watch, a partially sighted employee of an insane institution. Earlier chapters depict The Sharpshooter midst the horror and gruesomeness of battle in 1864.

Abused and controlled by Papa, a drifter who moved in them and took over, ConaLee and Eliza are deposited at an insane asylum where they beg shelter. Here, Eliza masquerades as Miss Janet and ConaLee as her maid. Gradually, they adapt and know and become known by Night Watch, Weed, a boy who hangs around, and Dr. Story, head of the asylum.

This graphic complex novel, based in part at a historical institution, deals with poverty, the trauma of war, and loss, the loss of tangible property, the loss of loved ones, and the loss of personal identity. Who am I really? Or if I know my name, what is my role or place in this now war-ravaged world?

Initially, I found this novel challenging. The battle in the wilderness section was especially hard reading and, for me, lacking in enough concrete details. I set the book aside for a few days, and then, re-engaging, found it to be found it rewarding and hopeful. Phillips also wrote Quiet Dell and Lark and Termite, novels I read for book group discussions. Recommended! (~JWFarrington)

MEETING YOUR PERFECT MATCH

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren

Romance novels are big sellers these days; it’s a hot genre. Even the once staid New York Times Book Review now has a monthly romance column.

While browsing fiction in one of my favorite independent bookstores, I kept encountering tags protruding from various shelves. Each read something like, “Looking for Romance, try [name of an author.]” Being curious, I followed a few of the leads and ended up near Christina Lauren’s books, an author unknown to me. It turns out Lauren is the pen name of two women, one named Christina and the other Lauren, and they have published several highly praised titles.

The Soulmate Equation is funny and fun. On a whim, statistician Jessica Davis submits a DNA sample to a new firm, GeneticAlly. They claim to find and match you with the best person based on certain of your genetic characteristics. A single parent of 7-year-old Juno, Jess is mainly focused on being a good mother and staying financially solvent. When her test results show she has a 98 percent compatibility match with Dr. River Pena, the company founder, an aloof and arrogant man, she is decidedly not interested. How their story unfolds despite their seemingly disparate personalities and lifestyles is witty, swoon worthy, and heartwarming. This is one for the beach!

GORGEOUS BLOOMS

COASTAL MAINE BOTANICAL GARDENS

Our time in Maine would not be complete without several visits to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay. Opened in 2007 and now in its 18^th season, the gardens cover 300 acres with some shoreline along Back River. It’s the largest garden complex in New England and a top attraction in Maine. Each year, there are new flowers to see, new areas have been planted, and this year, new signs enhance wayfinding. This week, the dahlias were especially lovely.

The gardens also feature works of sculpture, some on loan and others more permanent installations. Besides the giant wood trolls installed several years ago, two fiddlehead fern metal sculptures adorn one area. These were created by Shane Perley-Dutcher. Perley-Dutcher is a mixed media artist from the First Tobique Nation in New Brunswick. Copper in color, with the metal partly woven like a basket (echoing the work of Wabanaki weavers), these pieces are a great addition. They stick up above the greenery to be viewed from a distance (see header photo) and can be seen up close. You can also sit inside the fern!

Note: All unattributed photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)

Magic Moments in Maine

August 29, 2021August 29, 2021 JWF Leave a comment

FUN WITH GRANDKIDS

This past week our son and family made their annual visit to Maine, always a high point of the summer. We all visited the botanical gardens where the girls, 9 and 5, love the children’s garden. The small playhouse is their first stop, followed by getting in the rowboat and trying to work the oars. This time they also flexed their muscles to hoist a lobster trap from a small pond. Next is a walk along the shoreline path to spend a few moments at the fairy village and, on the way back, a last chance for the playhouse. On the way into the gardens, we paused to view Roskva, one of the giant trolls, but they weren’t particularly drawn to it; thus, we skipped seeing the other four.

Another favorite attraction is the Railway Village Museum on the outskirts of Boothbay. It was closed last year due to Covid so this was a return after two years. The biggest hit here is riding an old train on a loop around the village property. Dotted with historic Maine buildings from the mid-1800s to early 1900s, the village includes a schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, and a furnished house. The electric washer with a hand wringer proved to be especially fascinating. And old black locomotive and a caboose add to the overall experience as you can clamber aboard. Also appealing to our girls was the extensive model railroad exhibit with numerous trains on multiple tracks midst town and industry scenes. And just to add live interest, the village boasts two goats. Railway Village is a fun place for all ages from toddlers to adults!

None of us, children, parents, and grandparents, ever tire of gazing at the waves crashing on the rocky shore, watching for lobster boats checking their traps, or stooping on the pebbly beach to collect shells and sea glass.

The hardy souls in our family, our son and his older daughter, braved the cold water on the cove side. Everyone told them the ocean water was much warmer this year than last; nonetheless, it’s very cold water. Tim and E went swimming on the last day of their visit even though the air temperature was only 65!

The girls and I also colored the world map tablecloth (a companion to the U.S. one we had last year), played a game of riddles, watched F create a show starring two of her stuffed animals, read books together and separately, and did jigsaw puzzles. F wrote slips with a different riddle on it for each of us to put at our places for dinner one night. I provided the spelling, and she did the writing! They also went miniature golfing one afternoon, walked a nature trail near the local beach, swam in a local pool, and made their annual pilgrimage to Uncle Willy’s Candy Shoppe in Camden, two floors of sugar-laden treats. We all went out to dinner one evening and out to lunch another day to ensure that their mother had ample opportunity for steamed lobster and at least one lobster roll!

CULINARY CORNER

An honored tradition is for me and the girls to make blueberry pancakes for breakfast. Each year E and F get more adept at measuring, mixing, and pouring the batter. The result is tasty pancakes made with a big dose of love and served with real Maine maple syrup.

Our older granddaughter is a foodie and over the course of this past year has become quite the baker and cook. She has made cupcakes and cakes on her own and is developing a repertoire of chicken dishes and other mealtime fare. She’s also the proud owner of several cookbooks. One of her favorites, exceptionally well put together with helpful details and illustrations, is The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs.

With very little assistance, she tackled breakfast tacos. They were a delicious combination of scrambled eggs, crispy bacon squares, salsa, and grated cheese.

In July, the girls and their parents were on Long Island and learned to love steamed clams. I was happy to turn over the kitchen to our son one evening. He produced a wonderful plate of steamed clams over linguine. The clams were Maine local and very fresh, and the dish was perfect! Certainly, one of the best renditions I’ve ever had. Including my memorable first taste in Trastevere, Rome, on a late summer’s evening thirty years ago!

Time marches on, sometimes fleetingly, and the time we grandparents have with our granddaughters is so very precious. It’s fascinating each visit to observe how they’ve grown and matured, what their latest interests are, and how their views on the world and themselves have shifted. One of the best gifts is sharing just a bit in their lives, thanks to their marvelous parents!

Note: All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved)

Pond reflections at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Maine Time: Other Lives & Gardens

August 23, 2020August 23, 2020 JWF Leave a comment

READING BIOGRAPHY

When it comes to nonfiction, I read more biography than anything else. I find historical biography often compelling and am regularly drawn into memoirs written by contemporaries. The past few weeks, I’ve been dipping into two works in this genre.

The True History of the First Mrs. Meredith and Other Lesser Lives by Diane Johnson

Novelist Diane Johnson wrote this biography in 1972. New York Review Books re-issued it this year with a new introduction by critic Vivian Gornick. Mrs. Meredith, or Mary Ellen Meredith, was novelist George Meredith’s first wife. She ultimately left Meredith for artist Henry Wallis, with whom she’d been having an affair—a scandalous act for a woman in the 1850’s.

What makes this biography unconventional is Johnson’s attention to other individuals in Mary Ellen’s life, even those to whom she had only the briefest of connections. Mary Ellen’s journals and quotes from poems are included as well as tidbits of history and lore. Johnson was fortunate in her search for material to locate a cache of letters from Mary Ellen to Henry secreted in the former home of their son Felix.

It’s a quirky book and quite delightful, a bit like exploring an old-fashioned desk with pigeonholes filled with seemingly unrelated items. It was also an inspiration for Phyllis Rose. She’s the author of one of my favorite collective biographies entitled, Parallel Lives: Five Victorian Marriages, published in 1983.

The Shadow in the Garden: A Biographer’s Tale by James Atlas

James Atlas was a publisher and biographer whose works include the life stories of novelist Saul Bellow and poet Delmore Schwartz. His Schwartz biography was nominated for the National Book Award. In this work, Atlas talks about his approach to writing a life and, along the way discusses classical biographical works by Samuel Johnson, Elizabeth Gaskell and others. He also shares his conversations and encounters with noted critics of the 20^th century such as Elia Kazan, Philip Rahv, and Allen Bloom.

It’s a chatty book, written in an informal style. I quickly found myself warming to this self-effacing man who was persistent when on the hunt for source material. I have yet to finish it (have been happily distracted by my granddaughters) but will enjoy continuing his journey. The book was published in 2017 and, I just learned that Atlas died in 2019 at age 70.

THE MAINE GARDEN

Aluminum sculpture panels by Meg Brown Payson

The website for the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens is mainegardens.org so it seems appropriate to call it the Maine garden. Despite all the restrictions imposed due to Covid-19, the garden is beautiful and a draw for locals, tourists, and kids. I was concerned that our granddaughters would be disappointed since the playhouse, story barn, and water pump in the Children’s Garden are not available. They loved the Fairy Village, however, and requested a return visit. The village was the highlight, but they were also entranced by a waterfall, intrigued by hunting for and counting frogs, curious about the honeybee exhibit, and happy to traipse along the woodland trail noting the occasional sculpture or rock outcropping.

Gazing at the Sheepscot River — Looking out at Sheepscot River

Maine Moments

August 17, 2019August 17, 2019 JWF Leave a comment

COASTAL MAINE BOTANICAL GARDENS

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens is ten years old, and it keeps getting better each year. We visit on our own and also bring all of our guests. Our granddaughters are especially fond of the play house where there are kitchen appliances, a cupboard, and a small table and chairs where you can serve tea and cupcakes. Also a draw are the two old fashioned water pumps, a laundry tub with a washboard, a rowboat to climb into, the puppet theater, and a sandbox.

For adults, the scent garden is always worth wandering. And there’s also an outdoor art exhibit, “Unearthed,” a series of towering root sculptures by Pennsylvania artist Steve Tobin. The sculptures are made of metal and placed throughout the grounds. Some are realistic colors (brown and black) while others are bright such as a mustard yellow one and a glossy white one. The sculptures will be on view into 2020. A few years ago Lehigh University presented an outdoor exhibit of Tobin’s impressively large “Termite Hills” sculptures.

MAKING MEMORIES

Our son and daughter-in-law and two granddaughters were here for the week. E is a poised seven and F an active three, the age at which most kids form lasting memories. The Chief Penguin and I very much enjoy their annual visits to Maine and know that even when we’re gone, they will have Maine memories.

Memories of making blueberry pancakes with Grandma, of sampling Grandpa’s muffins, of visiting the botanical gardens, of clambering on the rocks at Molly’s Point for sea glass, shells, and smooth stones, of checking out the books and toys at Sherman’s, and memories of riding the narrow gauge train at Railway Village and more.

E is a voracious reader and quickly devours chapter books. F is at the “why?” stage and is a fan of trains and motion. Together the girls and I read umpteen stories, played with Josie and Rosie, their dolls, and colored and created with construction paper using an assortment of pencils, pens, and crayons.

There was no set schedule and the mornings flowed from a leisurely breakfast, to a walk in the yard or games on the deck, followed by an afternoon outing, and then dinner, be it pizza with friends and their grandkids, hot dogs and lobster rolls on the deck at Cozy’s, or comfort food here at Grandma and Grandpa’s. It was about as perfect a week as could be!

RECENT READING

America’s Reluctant Prince: The Life of John F. Kennedy Jr. by Steven Gillon

Much has been written about JFK Jr. and the Kennedys in the twenty years since his tragic death in 1999. One might wonder why we need yet another tome, and this one is a tome. Gillon was the graduate assistant in an undergraduate course Kennedy took at Harvard. Only a few years older than John, he became a friend and the two got together occasionally over the years. John sought out Gillon’s advice and writing suggestions when he was editing George magazine. While John was alive, Gillon respected and protected his privacy; now he feels comfortable sharing his perspective and his knowledge of the challenges John faced as a Kennedy, the standard bearer after his father’s death.

What was most interesting to me was the account of Kennedy’s years founding and creating George and struggling to make it a truly viable proposition. There is new information on his wife Carolyn’s inability to adjust to being trailed by the press, her volatile behavior, and her drug use, all of which made a marriage fraught with tension more tumultuous. It is in this context of daunting issues at work, difficulties at home, and the prolonged dying of his closest friend (his cousin Anthony), that John Jr. takes off on that fateful flight. The book is overly detailed and, sometimes tedious, but I found myself modifying and enlarging my view of this Kennedy. (~JWFarrington)

Tag: Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Maine Musings: Reading & More