MARGARET KNIGHT

508-627-8894

(margaret02539@yahoo.com)

At this time of year, almost anywhere on Chappaquiddick, you can open your door and step outside into the evening air and hear a chorus of spring peepers. I heard them for the first time last Thursday when I drove by the marsh next to Blueberry Cottage — the marsh that has become a pond with all the rain. From our house I could hear the same chorus singing loudly, nearly a quarter mile through the woods. The same day as I heard the peepers, the first daffodil was in bloom in our yard. Peepers and daffodils might seem like signs of spring, but it wasn’t until it snowed the next day that I was sure spring had come — Island spring, that is.

The annual spring egg hunt, hosted by Liz Villard, will be held on Saturday, April 3 at 4 p.m., rain or shine, at the community center.

Wednesday, April 7 is the date of the next potluck at the community center, with appetizers at 6 and dinner at 6:30 p.m. Sue and Will Geresy will be the hosts. All are welcome; bring a dish to share.

Sad news has reached us of the death of Philip Walsh in Peapack, N.J. He and his family have a house on Menaca Hill and have been visiting and enjoying Chappy for at least 25 years.

On Friday, April 9, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. there will be a free performance of Nightmares and Dreams: Immigrant Voices in the regional high school library. It is sponsored by ACE MV, as a finale to the spring session. This short play and video production originated in an adult education class that taught English through improvisational theatre games. The production is based on the life experiences of the people in the cast. A brief forum discussion on immigration issues on Martha’s Vineyard will follow. Products created by the Chaska Hill Women’s Cooperative in Cuzco, Peru will be available for purchase.

Sheep and goats are giving birth at the Farm Institute across Katama Bay. Their spring programs are starting, and will be running through May 29. Tuesday After School, for ages six and up, will give hands-on learning about our food systems, sustainable agriculture and taking care of the land. On Friday after school, Farmers-in-Training is for kids ages 11 and up who want to spend more time at the farm. On Saturday afternoon, kids ages five and up can help with the work to prepare the farm animals, barns and gardens for the season to come. Wee Farmer Mornings for tots two to four years old are every other Saturday — bring an adult. You can register online at farminstitute.org or call 508-627-7007, extension 104.

I thought I knew Chappaquiddick pretty well, having lived here most of my adult life. I walked and rode horseback all over when I was a kid, when you could see everywhere before the trees grew up. In my job as a census taker, I’ve found out how little I know about the place.

Recently I’ve been chasing paper roads in the Sampson Hill area. I’ve also been trying to find roads that exist on the ground but are not on any maps. The Enos lots area, across from the fire station, is a real maze, with roads that seem to bear no relation to the maps. Every now and then I’ve come upon an old farm house I knew from when I was a kid, but all the houses around it were new — and may be on some map, but not one I could read. Supposedly the maps were updated this past year, but I think that after the updaters wandered around in the woods for awhile, they realized the hopelessness of making any sense of Chappy. It looks as if they drew a few lines — because they knew there must be roads somewhere — and then went back to civilization for a cup of coffee. Anyway, driving around the back roads of Chappy is an education for me and, since I’ve always enjoyed solving puzzles, taking the census has been interesting.