Don’t judge a book by its cover
To the editor:
I have lived in four boarding homes in the past 18 years all over Aroostook County. Many people wonder, as they pass these “homes” on sidewalks or streets, “What’s going on in there? What’s it like?” One of our oldest residents, who has also lived in a few of these homes, is writing a novel titled, “Boarding Home Secrets.” To show you that “you can’t judge a book by its cover,” I offer this little exemplary anecdote.
Just as there are as many worldviews as there are earthlings, there are also as many homeviews as there are residents and caregivers working in them. The views range from blessed to cursed. What I’m offering here is one of the blessed perspectives. That is, I see each disturbance, discomfort or pain (by staff or resident) of abuse, disrespect or negligence as a stimulating challenge and opportunity to develop mentally, emotionally, socially and spiritually — not just for myself but also for my offender.
Now, some of us residents are quite unconventional in appearance. So I was once accosted by a homeowner for ambling past his residence on a quiet street. He said his wife is afraid of us, and warned me to stay on the other side of Main Street (in Limestone). I don’t know why he told me he was a volunteer in the fire department, but I used the information to file a complaint, containing his car plate number, with the fire chief and local police department. Then I fired off a missive to the area newspaper (Aroostook Republican) about his assault. It was printed, and I got some praise from the mental health field for doing so.
No names were mentioned in the letter, but a couple of weeks later, when I mustered up the courage to stroll his side of town again, I noticed his house was vacated.
I submit this letter to you to encourage others to file complaints with the authorities, and to belatedly thank the newspaper industry for its creative, curative impact in society as our whole voice, which is proverbially “greater than the sum of our voices.”
Val Vadis
Westfield
