It is a very good Friday, actually. The sun is shining, the swans are gliding in the river (20!), and the goats are low on the ridge. We saw our first wet bear tracks on the road this morning as we pedaled out to 15 mile and back. The solemnity of the church holiday is tempered by all this Springtime joy. But I will go to church tonight and ponder what the world would be like without Jesus and be even more grateful that so many people of all faiths – or none– still do our best to live by the words he said the night before his death: “I give you a new commandment: Love one another as I have loved you.”
A great place to see that in action is the collaboration between the Chilkat Valley Preschool and the Haines Senior Center. On Wednesday the preschoolers joined the elders for lunch, while Turner Construction’s crew cleared the land for their classroom addition. Donnie Turner donated the clearing and dirt work and Lutak Lumber also has made a generous donation, as have many individuals and businesses as well as the Haines Borough. This is a community collaboration, and a reminder of how productive and creative Haines is at solving problems when we all work together for the common good. (The seniors needed help sustaining their center, the preschool needed a new home. Haines loves our elders and children.) The Senior Center is also adjacent to the preschooler’s favorite park, Tlingit Park Playground. That project was facilitated by the Women’s Club and endures as another testament to successful Haines collaborations.
My neighbor Betty is a regular for lunch at the Senior Center and she invited me to witness the experimental meal that may become monthly if it works out, since I have three grandchildren in preschool. Because Betty knows the staid seniors so well, and I know the rambunctious little kids so well, we both feared the worst and hoped for the best.
Well, the preschoolers had the oldsters hearts before they took off their jackets and neatly stowed them. I think it was the tu-tus, and all those bright colors. Then they sang, and every face in the room burst into smiles. The tune with movement about growing from tiny seeds into great big flowers sprung some happy tears. At our table, the children and adults ate without incident. No one even spilled milk, and we had fun communicating. Afterwards, the adults sipped coffee, the children called “thank you!” and ran off to the playground, and the Turner crew kept working.
