Dear Pine Plains 11.26.21

Dear Pine Plains,

Tomorrow is Decoration Day, a tradition in Pine Plains begun as a way to hold a celebration that would include anyone. No shopping, no spending, just a lovely time for families to wander the streets, decorate a tree, watch a parade. It has always been sponsored by the Pine Plains Business Association.

Please take note of that: the PPBA is responsible for many of the best things about Pine Plains. By supporting local businesses, you support the town. This is a simple equation, but a lot of folks forget that when the Girl Scout Troop has a fundraiser, or a sports team or a Class of… needs contributions, the first places they hit are businesses, and our businesses give freely. This holiday season, please give back to them. In a small rural town with no infrastructure, staying open is about as hard as it gets.

Here is a poem about plants and thanks:

LET US GIVE THANKS

Let us give thanks for a bounty of people

For children who are our second planting

and though they grow like weeds

and the wind too soon blows them away,

May they forgive us our cultivation

and remember fondly where their roots are.

Let us give thanks:

For generous friends, with hearts as big as hubbards

and smiles as bright as their blossoms;

For feisty friends as tart as apples;

For continuous friends, who, like scallions and cucumbers,

keep reminding us we’ve had them;

For crotchety friends, as sour as rhubarb

and as indestructible;

For handsome friends, who are as gorgeous as eggplants

and as elegant as a row of corn,

and the others, as plain as potatoes and so good for you;

For funny friends, who are as silly as Brussels sprouts

and as amusing as Jerusalem artichokes,

and serious friends, as complex as cauliflowers

and as intricate as onions;

For friends as unpretentious as cabbages,

as subtle as summer squash,

as persistent as parsley,

as delightful as dill,

as endless as zucchini,

and who, like parsnips,

can be counted on to see you throughout the winter;

For old friends,

nodding like sunflowers in the evening-time

and young friends coming on as fast as radishes;

For loving friends, who wind around us like tendrils

and hold us, despite our blights, wilts, and witherings;

And finally, for those friends now gone,

like gardens past that have been harvested,

but who fed us in their times

that we might have life thereafter;

For all these we give thanks.

— Max Coots

Stay thankful, Pine Plains!
Darrah Cloud