Showing Up
            This past Monday as temperatures climbed into the 40's, lots of people swore  they smelled Spring, and maybe they did. We all have our own particular attunements, and some no doubt do smell seasons before others. Some of the sensibilities we express reflect the deep mysteries of who we just seem to be, often from birth, our inexplicable individuality. Other sensibilities though, reflect what we've been taught and what we've learned from experience. Most of us have learned a decent amount, though few us know as much as we used to. But what we have learned, and how we've come to feel about things, are definitely worth sharing.
            There's a lot going on in the public sphere these days. Everyone's got the right to comment on what they see happening in their community and their region,  maybe even an obligation. And when we do speak, we all have the right to say what we're thinking and to be heard for what we're saying. And we all, also, have the obligation to realize that what we say has a real effect on the world in which we live.  
            Olive's turnout for the Belleayre Resort public hearings was impressive, not just for the solidarity of views expressed but for the thoughtfulness and the passion and the clarity of values evidenced by so many who chose to speak. The fact that people turned out in very large numbers was of course significant, and many folks afterwards commented on their reinforced sense of community, and their relief that so many of their neighbors seemed to feel as they did.
            Some time later, many of us read an account of one of the hearings in the NY Times, with just enough of a suggestion of condescension to show us that we are indeed, more different and more complex as a place, than first-time city visitors are likely to take in.  Most of us would likely dispute that people's feelings for the land here in Olive bear much relation to " vegan, Zen-infused, countercultural way of life" the Times suggested some may have come here for.  In fact for many, the deep feelings for these mountains evidenced of late reflect ties to the land that go back generations.  And for many more, perhaps for most, they reflect the solid values that have shaped who each of us, as adults and by choice, have turned out to be. And it turns out that as a whole and as a collective, we're a community with some pretty impressive credentials by way of the values we share.
            It also turns out that those who showed up to speak out on the project have made a difference already. Due in some part to the overwhelming public sentiment expressed, as we go to press the Department of Environmental Conservation has announced that the public comment period of the resort project has been extended until April 23, along with the deadline for groups and municipalities to file for party status to the projects expected hearings phase.
            There will be one more opportunity for people to speak out: the final public hearing at Onteora High School, which begins at 4:00 PM, next Thursday  Feb.19.