I trust that everyone else has been as busy as we have and
did not miss my rather long absence from writing.
After a few quiet days in New York, we drove up to Sharon
where we spent the last week of December having loads of fun with the children,
who were all home on vacation from school. One of the afternoons, we watched
the 2006 remake of Charlotte’s Web. We were barely aware that this existed,
because in 2006 our grandchildren were too young to sit through a movie. Barry
and I were just glad we were able to get the four of them to agree on what to
watch, and we even tried to use the discussion as an opportunity to understand
the concepts of negotiation and compromise. We had stocked up on snacks so
everyone had a great time.
The next day was our chance to do something we have been
talking about for a few months now: Barry and I took Maya to the Boston Museum
of Fine Arts. Back in August I wrote about Maya’s interest in art, and we had
been waiting for the opportunity to go with her. We were concerned about how
crowded it might be during the vacation week so we arrived just when they
opened, and although there were a lot of visitors it did not induce uncomfortable
claustrophobia. They had arranged some activities for school-age children that
we felt were very well done, amply supplied and with excellent guidance from
the folks running the program. There was a large room with impressionist prints
spread around the tables where each child was given a palette of water color
paints with which to draw their own Monet-inspired scenes. Between the organized
activities we roamed around various parts of the museum. We spent a fair amount
of time in the galleries with Monet, Renoir, and Van Gogh, but Maya took
interest in many other areas, particularly in the period furniture rooms. To
say that she was practically floating through the museum barely does it justice,
and we stayed much longer than we expected. We then headed to the kosher pizza
shop in Brookline, just a few minutes away, and I do not think I have ever seen
Maya eat quite that enthusiastically.
Wednesday was New Year’s Eve. Boston played and continues to
play a major role in the celebrations of “First Night” in various cities around
the country.
The first First Night was in Boston on
December 31, 1975. It was organized by a small group of artists who sought an
alternative way of celebrating New Year's Eve, where Boston’s young, innovative
artists and musicians could perform on both indoor and outdoor stages. They
also wanted to avoid the emphasis on alcohol that is common at New Year's Eve
parties.[1] Soon other surrounding communities
started their own First Night celebrations. By the 1990s, the First Night
Boston event was attracting works by over a thousand artists.[2] In 2006, more than a million visitors
attended First Night events, including free outdoor ice sculptures on Boston
Common and in Copley Square, and waterfront fireworks.[3]
Live coverage of the final part of Boston's First Night,
including the countdown to midnight and fireworks over Boston Harbor that
begin at the stroke of midnight, is broadcast by WBZ-TV. CBS, the station's parent
company, is an official sponsor.
In addition to the New Year's festival, First Night is deeply
involved in Boston's art and culture communities via the Neighborhood Network.
Started in 1994, the Neighborhood Network partners First Night with 25
community organizations throughout Boston's neighborhoods- including Dorchester, Mattapan, Jamaica Plain andSouth Boston-
to engage young people and families in creative workshops with artists and
educators. In 2000 First Night launched Summer Beat, a series of summer camp
like dance and music workshops spread around the city of Boston.
In 2013, the non-profit First Night Boston organization closed
for financial reasons, though Mayor Menino of Boston (in office for only
another year) pledged to find private or public funding the January 2014
celebration.[4]On November 11, 2013, Mayor Menino announced
he had acquired the necessary funding and that the 2013 First Night would be a
“a bigger, brighter display than ever before.”[5]
Simmie and family are the troopers and they headed up to
Boston on the train early on Wednesday and stayed up there until the early
evening. They had a great time and I must admit that I am a little jealous that
I am no longer up to such outings. We settled for taking Joshua and Ella to see
Big Hero 6. To be honest, it was a bit too violent for my taste and perhaps for
Ella’s as well, but Joshua loved it. It really is true that many movies are
produced with 10-12 year old boys in mind.
On Thursday the family finally did something else I have long wanted to do: we sat in coordinated clothing for a new family portrait. This was only the second time we have done this, the first being the one we had taken shortly before my diagnosis. That picture served me very well sitting next to my bed on all those nights in the hospital. I think the new picture, with all eleven of us, came out pretty well, and will post one here when we have them. I hope it never goes near a hospital room!
Tomorrow I will write about a few new movies we have managed to see in between all the other fun.
Love,
Rebecca
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