SOLON & BEYOND: Answering questions about Flagstaff

by Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percy
grams29@tds.net
Solon, Maine 04979

Good morning, dear friends. Don’t worry, be happy!

Here I sit on this Monday morning with no paper to read, it doesn’t start the week off right. But here I sit at this computer, hoping I can write something to cheer you all up after what is going on in this crazy mixed up world!

I’m going to start with these words on one of the many little snip-its I have saved called Life’s Little Instructions: Watch a sunrise at least once a year, Strive for excellence, not perfection, Plant a tree on your birthday, Return borrowed vehicles with the gas tank full, Compliment three people every day, Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them, Leave everything a little better than you found it, Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures, Be forgiving of yourself and others, Remember other people’s birthdays, Have a firm handshake, Send lots of Valentine cards, Sign them, “Someone who thinks you’re terrific,” Look people in the eye, Be the first to say, “Hello,” Return all things you borrow, Make new friends but cherish the old ones, Keep secrets, Plant flowers every spring, Always accept an outstretched hand, Stop blaming others, Take responsibility for every area of your life, Wave at kids on school buses, Live your life as an exclamation not an explanation, Keep your promises (no matter what) and Count your blessings.

I know that’s a lot to remember, but just a few might help.

Last week I wrote some about the Senior Center that was started in Solon years ago. Came across another little clipping with a picture showing the newly-elected Senior Citizen Board; Named as the advisory committee at the Solon Senior Citizen’s center were Mrs. Deborah McAllister, vice chairman, Mrs. Artie Heald, secretary, Eldred Heald, chairman, and Bert W. Paul, treasurer.

There have been several letters to the editor on the CMP Corridor, both for and against, lately. I’m sure you all know where I stand on that issue, since I grew up in Flagstaff. I came across the following words from the book, Moods and Memories, by Nikolai Dejevsky, Drowned Village.

The lake stretches away into tranquility, primal pulsations – Just the mild shiver of the pine carpets cascading the banks, Just the doppelganger clouds skimming the surface. Breathe deep and slow, drink in the scene, savor nature’s best from the vantage point of the dam Which created the lake. Nature preserved, power generated – perfect harmony, you say. In part, yes, but in part no – more like shards of cold hearts which cast a pall over good intent and makes the heart shiver. At least you can spare a consideration for the dead in Flagstaff village, which lies beneath the lake surface before you. A tiny place drowsing in a small valley off the main road. That was all it was before the dam surveyors showed up. But it was rooted in time and place with a church and graveyard, no doubt, With its own sense of identity and pride. How can we tell? Who’s left to ask now that Flagstaff ‘s gone? The dam was their death sentence; the lake won out over village, and well, that was that, case closed, progress guaranteed …The residents got resettled elsewhere, dispersed into oblivion. What happened to the church and the graves? Nobody seems to know. The nearby towns have suffered collective amnesia; Local guidebooks and tourist brochures are silent. Seems less than decent; seems there’s a whiff of guilt in the air. Did the power people make promises, like moral hush money? Did the neighbors sacrifice Flagstaff, wash their hands of it? Did the neighbors sacrifice Flagstaff, wash their hands of it ? If they did, then does the good electricity they rely on and the clear lake water they enjoy not bite back occasionally? Does not the power flicker and the water taste bitter from those drowned graves and abandoned spirits of Flagstaff?

(I don’t know when the above was written, but I would like to answer a few questions asked. The graves were moved to Eustis before Flagstaff was flooded. I would also like to add a small piece of a clipping that I have. (Nearly all of the buildings which have been purchased by the Central Maine Power Co. have been resold and the new owners are making every effort to salvage the materials before rising water makes this impossible. It appears that about six sets of buildings which have not been sold to the company will be inundated when the new lake is at high water mark. I have pictures of them after they were flooded. Never did find out if they got money for their homes and land. (And the statement made in the above poem that really disturbed me was (“Did the neighbors sacrifice Flagstaff, wash their hands of it? I can verify that I did not sacrifice Flagstaff, but I am almost the last one left, and I’m still hanging in there!

And now, from Percy’s memoirs:

Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. For the Lord grants wisdom. Whoever walks with the wise will become wise; whoever walks with fools will suffer harm. Sensible people keep their eyes glued on wisdom, but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth. Words of true wisdom are as refreshing as a bubbling brook.