I know, I’m probably preaching to the choir
here but I’m often asked by friends and family from away, why I choose to live
in Maine. Keep in mind Rhode Islanders (where I originally migrated from 23 years
ago) rarely travel farther than 30 miles in any direction. Traveling farther
than that in R.I. requires a GPS, a detailed plan and a lot of patience for
traffic! My moving 300 miles north to a place they assumed didn’t have any
modern conveniences was a lot for most of them to handle. The answer, for me,
is simple and complicated at the same time.
To live in Maine is to live creatively, with both intention and purpose. There are two kinds of Mainers. Some Mainers live here because they were born here and have chosen to stay. The rest of us, born in other places both near and far, looked around, and of all the possible choices, decided to make Maine our homes. Whether you were born here or migrated here most of us live here because we have chosen to live our lives outside the box. We have chosen to live our lives creatively and this is the place to do it. We have chosen to build lives that often look nothing like the lives lived in other places.
To live in Maine is to live creatively, with both intention and purpose. There are two kinds of Mainers. Some Mainers live here because they were born here and have chosen to stay. The rest of us, born in other places both near and far, looked around, and of all the possible choices, decided to make Maine our homes. Whether you were born here or migrated here most of us live here because we have chosen to live our lives outside the box. We have chosen to live our lives creatively and this is the place to do it. We have chosen to build lives that often look nothing like the lives lived in other places.
To build a life in this beautiful area of
Maine we have come to accept the difficulties. To live here is not a destiny it
is a bold decision! We know that winters will be very long and very cold. We
know that the economy will be challenging at best. We know we might have to
carve a living out of several part-time jobs rather than one steady one. We
know that our budgets will always have to be creative. We know that all these
things take a certain type of personality to overcome and we are willing to do
what it takes because to make a life here is worth all that.
We live in a place where we enjoy both the
mountains and the valleys. We have cities full of art and culture just a
stone’s throw from all the natural beauty we could ever want to
experience. We have warm sunshine and gentle ocean breezes. We have fall
seasons of bounty and harvest and explosions of Nature’s color. We have
sparkling winter snow. We have crystal clear lakes and the comforting scent of
pine. We have a place where whatever we create, or whatever we grow, we can
leave it on a table at the end of our driveway with a box with a slit in the
top and know that the people who come by will not only be appreciative of our
offerings but honest enough to leave the money for them, even if we aren’t
there.
I chose to make a life here in Maine because I
don’t want to have to choose between a city life and a country life. I want
them both! I want to grow herbs on my window sill and visit the Farmer’s Market
and then decide at the last minute that I don’t feel like cooking and walk
downtown instead and eat something amazing with a glass of wine and good
friends. I want to buy and eat local not because I am making a political
statement but because we simply have the best damn stuff around, right here! I
want to be able to leave my apartment and run all my errands for the week and
never get in my car if I don’t feel like it. I want to be able to wear either
my high heels or my Bean boots to any event I go to, depending on my mood, and
know either would be fine!
Maine isn’t this way by chance. It’s this way
because we work very hard to make it so. We’ve all worked to carve amazing
lives out of a harsh and beautiful landscape. Maine is about community and
diverse culture. It’s about home cooking and home brew. It is Bean Suppers and
Beano. It is Acadian culture, Jewish bagels and amazing Thai food. It is
downtown pubs, fish & chips and sweet potato fries. It is Italian bakeries
and art shows and local farms! More importantly, Maine is people who still have
faith in the world. We volunteer in record numbers. We vote in record numbers.
We give above and beyond our budgets. We care, we believe and we do because
that’s not just the way life should be, it’s the way life is.
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