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JAS
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« : November 16, 2010, 10:43:11 PM » |
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The Deerhunter & Community Breakfast took place on November 13. I took some photos which I am slowly adding to the photo forums. While I was up in the belfry looking up at the bell clapper, I had a thought which turned into the following:
"This is the bell clapper.Witness the faithful sentinel,waiting for someone to pull the rope,and release it from its silent obedience, a surly basso profundo rudely awakened,happily roused to a confident tenor, sending its peals of laughter, joy or warning rippling through the village. Oh Blackberry and I-Phone ring tone alerts, Harken.....Your Grandfather would speak."
Meeting places such as the Baptist building were ahead of their time. Bells were used to notify town residents of significant events, such as weddings, fires and significant times, like midnight on Christmas Eve. Now,the grandchildren of the town bell, smart phone ring tone alerts, serve a similar purpose.
Facebook and web sites such as this are used for catching up with our neighbors and learning about what significant events occur locally. The dining tables in buildings like the Baptist building were used in the same way. I saw, at the Hunters/Community breakfast, the same kind of social media exchange occurring while people met and talked and caught up with one another. I saw faces light up when someone walked in the door and saw someone who they hadn't seen in a long time.
People met, they laughed, they talked, they ate. I imagine that if the building were a person, it would have smiled and been warmed by the vitality of the people who visited. The breakfast was a breakfast, yes. Money was raised to help maintain the building.But perhaps for the first time , I realized that the magic of that event and others like it, had little to do with raising money or serving a meal. It is about providing an excuse for people to get together and to get excited when they see an old friend and to just connect, just like Facebook, but unlike Facebook, there is no substitute for a real smile, a real handshake and real conversation with a friend.
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