However, I am not going to be as gentle with Ms. Weir as Judy was in her
letter. I moved to The Valley from the Washington, DC, area in 1970 because I
wanted a simpler, slower and more personal life than the one I had been living
in the DC area for the previous 25 years. I came here to learn the ways of the
local people and to do my best to blend in with them. I was not disappointed.
The tempo of life was so much more civilized than that of the big city. People
knew each other, respected each other’s views, helped each other in need, and
they still do today.
I learned to log from and with George Sawyer, our neighbor in Fayston, helped
him sugaring in the spring and enjoyed his maple syrup, and his wit and
friendship.
Shopping at Mehuron’s and at what was then Doc Bisbee’s store were, and still
are, occasions to meet and chat with acquaintances while getting friendly and
exceptional service.
Unfortunately, circumstances caused me to have to leave The Valley and move
closer to Burlington, but I still call on Jack at Bisbee’s when I need
something I can’t get here.
Our great shopkeepers are entitled to set the hours as they wish, and to take a
day off a week, regardless of what they plan to do with it. It’s up to us to
respect this and adapt, which certainly has not been difficult.
And now we have the likes of Ms. Weir who wants to change our ways to meet her
big city requirements. Why does she split her time between Connecticut and The
Valley if she is displeased with the slower tempo of our lives here with which
she seems not to be able to cope? She can do her shopping in Connecticut and
stay there on the Sundays she needs stores to be open. I am sure that our
merchants will survive without her patronage.
Henri de Marne
40-year Valley resident, now living in Essex
