As a visitor to Amherst, I attended the annual lighting of the Merry Maple for the first time. It was good to see so many people together out at the Common speaking and drinking hot cider, their breaths steaming in the cold evening air. I should add, though, that I was very disappointed in the lead-up to the tree lighting ceremony that followed.
It is particularly warming to witness a festive occasion in the town at this time, in the face of the pandemic, even more so since I learnt that for obvious reasons the event could not take place last year. But the person who introduced the occasion made no mention of just how unusually affirmative this all was.
No allusion was made to the history of the lighting of the tree, nor to its meaning –– which I imagine may be linked to a celebration of light as hours of darkness lengthen and the solstice approaches. This too, or some other explanation, was passed over in total silence. Special words count on special occasions, for adults and children alike –– they capture the spirit of what is happening, draw people in and add to the depth of the moment.
Instead, apart from the thanks for those who had helped set up the event, we were given nothing but a list of sponsors. While these individuals and entities are clearly important, surely there was more meaning than that to the lighting of the Merry Maple?
Denis Hirson
Amherst
