Today was the coldest day we've had all fall and winter so far. Even so, I refused to wear a coat, and it really wasn't unbearably cold with a nice scarf and gloves. I spent some time in Concord today with my cousin and her daughter. We met at Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House and enjoyed the tour together. For me, there's nothing like sharing a treasure with someone else, and that's what today was like.
Concord is one of my favorite NE towns, and the Orchard House is one of the main reasons. I've been through the tour more times than I can count, and I always learn something new, always see it with new eyes and ears. This time, it was decorated for Christmas. I wish I could have taken pictures inside, but of course they wouldn't let me. I did get a picture of Louisa's window from the outside because I was so taken with the Queen Anne's Lace flower heads they had hanging there. Look closely and you will see them in the upper right hand window.
One of the most charming things we heard was an account of a conversation between Louisa and Henry David Thoreau. He told her to look at something on the ground. "I don't see it Henry," she said. "Look closer," he told her. So she did, but all she saw was "nothing but a cobweb." "That's not nothing, Louisa," he replied. "That's the handkerchief of a fairy." Penelope and I both thought that was strikingly unlike our concept of Thoreau! A beautiful thought...which isn't to say he can't have beautiful thoughts. It just seemed more delicate than we expected.
After we spent a small fortune in the gift shop (I always do...), we made our way to Concord Center and browsed through several shops before landing in a little Marketplace pub for lunch. I had the delicious "Concord Panini." By then, it was time to go our separate ways. We had a great time together, though.
Today was the coldest day we've had all fall and winter so far. Even so, I refused to wear a coat, and it really wasn't unbearably cold with a nice scarf and gloves. I spent some time in Concord today with my cousin and her daughter. We met at Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House and enjoyed the tour together. For me, there's nothing like sharing a treasure with someone else, and that's what today was like.
Concord is one of my favorite NE towns, and the Orchard House is one of the main reasons. I've been through the tour more times than I can count, and I always learn something new, always see it with new eyes and ears. This time, it was decorated for Christmas. I wish I could have taken pictures inside, but of course they wouldn't let me. I did get a picture of Louisa's window from the outside because I was so taken with the Queen Anne's Lace flower heads they had hanging there. Look closely and you will see them in the upper right hand window.
One of the most charming things we heard was an account of a conversation between Louisa and Henry David Thoreau. He told her to look at something on the ground. "I don't see it Henry," she said. "Look closer," he told her. So she did, but all she saw was "nothing but a cobweb." "That's not nothing, Louisa," he replied. "That's the handkerchief of a fairy." Penelope and I both thought that was strikingly unlike our concept of Thoreau! A beautiful thought...which isn't to say he can't have beautiful thoughts. It just seemed more delicate than we expected.
After we spent a small fortune in the gift shop (I always do...), we made our way to Concord Center and browsed through several shops before landing in a little Marketplace pub for lunch. I had the delicious "Concord Panini." By then, it was time to go our separate ways. We had a great time together, though.
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