It's been a good choice

I ran into a friend I hadn’t seen since our retirement party, and she asked me, “Are you glad you stayed in Ashland?” After nearly twenty months of living in our own home in our choice of town, rather than where the Salvation Army assigned us, it was a fair question. And the answer is . . . Yes!

“How do I love thee?” asked poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning. “Let me count the ways.” First, unlike those who run off to Florida the day their Golden Buckeye card arrives in the mail, I happen to like snow. Growing up in Buffalo, you get used to it, I suppose. Sledding, snowball fights, snow people, snow angels, and fluffy snowflakes shimmering in the streetlights – much more interesting than beaches and palm trees.

Here’s another reason. After years of packing my own groceries and schlepping them to the car through the snow and slush (a necessary evil of the East coast), I’m glad someone else schleps them to my car and loads them in. Thanks, White Barn, Hawkins and Buehlers, for your extra mile service. To date, I haven’t driven away from Buehlers without my groceries.

I especially appreciate living in a community where the people at the BMV are friendly. I’ve experienced a horror story or two over the years, but on my recent trip to renew my license, the staff was courteous and kind – I like that! They didn’t even make me change the weight on my license. Made my day!

I’m excited for the future of Ashland, as the new schools are built and the community has an accessible, contemporary performance space at the new auditorium. I’m glad for the kids of Ashland, and can’t wait to see the middle –schoolers on their first day in their new digs.

Even though I haven’t been too faithful in my attendance at the study circles sponsored by the Center for Civic Life, I love the community conversations happening these days, especially around the subjects of the arts and our downtown. A community that talks together will grow together into the future. And I’m grateful, too, for the affirmations and actions of faith that permeate our community. We don’t always talk about those things, but they are the underpinnings that strengthen who we are and inform what we do.

And then there’s the university and the seminary, with the richness they bring to our city in so many ways. Sports, art, music, their libraries, entertainment, and thoughtful presentations – there’s a warm welcome at AU and ATS.

Here’s another reason I’m glad we stayed. I’m not living in a retirement community with a bunch of blue-haired old women and paunchy men. Instead, I’m in a real, live, multi-generational neighborhood. I can watch the children play (in the snow), chat with the kids on their way home from school, and catch up with friends at the supermarket (while someone else schleps my groceries).

While I sometimes complain that Ashland lacks the chain restaurants that other locations have, I really like our homegrown eateries, especially the Lynway, the Dairy Bar, and Kelly’s. I’ve got favorites at each, especially the pie. It may not be cutting edge gourmet, but who really likes artichokes and hummus?

Speaking of food, I love that our Dairy Queen stays open all year. Not every town is so lucky. After driving home from Wooster in the snowstorm the other night, I treated myself to a Blizzard, and it was worth every calorie. And, in the midst of that snowstorm, the A&W opened. Woohoo! The Coney dogs are calling my name for sure.

There’s more, but I’ll save some for a day when I’m desperate for a column idea. What I discovered is that my early impressions of Ashland were spot-on, as the Olympic skating commentators have been keen to say. It’s been almost eight years now, and I’m still a smitten immigrant, glad to call Ashland home. And the best part? It’s like Lauren Myracle says: “I live in my own little world. But it’s OK, they know me here.” Now if I could just get the lovely Madelyn Simone and her parents to move to Ashland . . .