This is not a local picture...?!?!

Last week, we asked our readers to submit their best LOCAL fall foliage pictures on Facebook with the intention of publishing some of our favorites in this edition. Thank you for some beauties! Ironically enough, yours truly came up empty-handed. There’s not a single Chautauqua County fall foliage picture on my phone to date this season.

Why’s that you say?!

I’m stuck in Maine.

Well, not exactly stuck. I have willingly volunteered to remain here with my son, Zach, at school — much to his young-adult chagrin. The upside for Zach is that he will graduate from one of the country’s premier prep schools for experiential learning as he snowboards competitively this winter in the Western Mountains of Maine! The downside is that he lives with the challenge of Type I Diabetes and seizure disorder and must work a little harder than most to achieve his dreams (and deal with his hang around-er mother).

The upside for me is that I get to spend senior year with both Zach, and his brother, Nick, who also is fortunate enough to have earned huge financial support to attend Gould Academy. The downside for me is that, of course, I will miss YOU, our loyal readers!

The purpose of sharing this personal information is twofold.

One: Please bear with me this school year. We will continue to publish the Chautauqua Gazette, but we appreciate your extra patience and support if possible. I’ll be back with the boys on their school breaks, but I won’t be as available to stop by your businesses, local events and community happenings as much as I normally like to do. This is just a temporary in-person sabbatical through next May, but rest assured that I will remain only a quick text, phone call or email away. Thanks to modern technology, and our incredibly talented Gazette team on the ground, we will continue to seamlessly publish your proud community newspaper every Monday.

Secondly: Being “stuck” in Maine — despite its own rightful beauty — continues to remind me of how much I truly do love Chautauqua County. While the scenery here is just as breathtaking as a Long Point State Park trail on a bright fall day, I do miss our community. It’s the familiar, the comfortable and my lifelong, proud roots. It’s our Main Street shops and restaurants; local libraries and schools; community-minded companies and people-centered politicos. I’ve felt kindly welcomed by the locals of Bethel, Maine — a rural town even smaller than Ellery, but for the first time as an adult in decades, I’m living very far away from “my people”. I love to travel, and I love adventure. And, for my sons, I won’t hesitate a second to temporarily trade our rolling hills for towering mountains and sparkling five lakes for the nearby ocean, but this extended visit has reaffirmed my focus: Chautauqua County is no doubt my forever home.