The sight of our island is being spread far and wide. Thanks to Barbara Bannon Moody, (part of the Manning clan) who sent me an e-mail about the annual calendar published by local photographer Bob Mitchell. The July 2008 photograph is an aerial shot from the southwest, across the Sheepscot towards the island. Barb even included his web address if you'd like to communicate with him. I took the easy way out and let "my fingers walk through the phone book." It is

www.mitchellphoto

. com . He does sell prints, and by late this afternoon, I'll have ordered mine.

Barb went on with family news. Their daughter Rowan is a junior in high school and they were coming to Boston this week to look at B.C. Tufts and Northeastern. I wonder if she knows that the president of Northeastern is a former island renter? Barbara herself is about to finish up her master's degree in English, which she has been working on for the past five years. She'll graduate in May and we send congratulations for her perseverance! I wonder if she will switch to a teaching position. She is currently the manager, Marketing Communications for the National School Boards Association in Alexandria, Va.

An e-mail dated March 12 from Deb Pierce, expounds on our Small World. That day Deb had ridden the Sugarloaf lift with Jane McClennan's next door neighbor! He was able to tell Deb that Jane had moved out of her home the day before. He indicated how close the two families had been for Jane had joined his family for their son's graduation party. I'm guessing she just crossed the backyard. Deb said it was fun reading about the Harper family ski trip to Austria. She and Art have skied the places mentioned in my story and found them just as enjoyable. This year the Pierces ventured to Sun Valley with a Sugarloaf group and found conditions perfect. Their condo mates were named Hewson and her family owned the Old Ridlon cottage until 1953.That lady's maiden name must have been Merrill, and the island cottage book says that Betsy Ridlon bought that cottage in 1953. Prior to their skiing in Idaho, they visited with daughter Elizabeth and her friend Nicole who are both working in Tucson. Elizabeth was able to ski two days with them at Sun Valley. Previous to the date of the e-mail Art had visited with Mike Thompson, while Deb reconnected with her cousin Joy Foster in Wiscasset.

Earlier last week snail mail brought several items from Eleanor Morrell about the gallery that daughter Deb Polackwich is now involved with. They will go into the island album. Deb was north to go to a meeting and it was a good chance for that family to gather to celebrate three family birthdays with three different cakes. Sandy Rooney's cake done by El had a Valentine theme. Sandy did the one for Isadora Osgood with a "Kid" type theme and El also did the one for Betsy Morrell which has to be an angel cake filled with whipped cream. Boy is my mouth watering!

On Saturday Eleanor called again with some sad news. We have lost another islander. Her brother-in-law, Jim Parsons, had passed away last week. He was the husband of Pat Manning Parsons (deceased) and the father of three, Stuart, Cindy and Ted. There will be a memorial service for him on April 26 at the Mooreland School where Jim taught French for many, many years. Jim had been in a nursing facility when he fell, and then developed pneumonia which took him. I didn't know that he taught French for he never used it around me when we would slave away at island work parties. I knew him best for his love of music. Even in later life, he used to bring his portable keyboard with him for the two weeks he and Pat were here. He seemed to court disaster as when on a work party he managed to step into a wasp's nest and was badly stung. I for one will miss him as will the rest of the island community and we send our sympathy to those three children.