Anyone raised in an Acadian household knows what happens this time of year. It is not only time for ice out and the return of migrating birds. It is the time when kitchen cupboards are emptied and cleaned. Floors are washed and waxed. Closets are emptied and outgrown clothes are mended, washed and passed on to smaller people, or repurposed into quilts.
Room by room, beginning upstairs, ceilings and walls are washed. Nothing in the house is left untouched. It’s Le Grand Ménagé — the ritual described by Bobbie Morrow of Presque Isle in the new edition of Echoes magazine, released March 21.
Born and raised in the St. John Valley, Bobbie respects tradition, but takes a modern view of spring cleaning.
Le Grand Méngé is one of several articles with Acadian themes in Echoes 112. Don Cyr of Lille and Armand O’Clair of Hermon both reflect on the significance of growing up in two cultures, one in Canada and the other in Maine. Cyr details his path to becoming a collector of antiques as a boy in Presque Isle in the eighth part of a series on the restoration of former church in Lille.
Ashland native O’Clair describes his connection to the Filles du Roy — women who were sent by King Louis XIV from France to New France (Canada) between 1663 and 1673 to assure the success of the colony initially settled by lumbermen, farmers, trappers and soldiers.
Echoes promises spring with a bright cover full of red tulips (photo by Presque Isle’s Michael Gudreau) and with a feature on changing ice-out dates by forestry consultant Lloyd Irland, who has worked on various aspects of climate change. Irland also co-authors an article with Kevin Laustsen of the Maine Forest Service on changes in Aroostook forests since 1990.
Remillie Norsworthy of Chapman laments the declining interest in harness racing in Aroostook County and calls for its revival in “Equine Thunder,” a feature illustrated with archival photos of the track at the Northern Maine Fairgrounds, including one of Governor Edmund Muskie at the races on Governor’s Day.
Colorful photos of children from Zippel School in Presque Isle and New Sweden Elementary School complement a collage picturing international spectators at the World Cup 8 Biathlon at the Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle Feb. 11-13. The eighth stop on the nine-stop 2015-16 International Biathlon Union World Cup tour, Presque Isle was in the international spotlight, setting records for television viewers worldwide. Echoes editor Kathryn Olmstead describes the efforts of local volunteers leading up to the event and quotes her conversations with a few of the visitors with roots in Russia, Ukraine and Germany.
In her new column “Kristine’s Kitchen,” Kristine Bondeson shares the story of her triumph in producing “Perfect Popovers.” Genealogist Dottie Hutchins, in her regular column “Tapping Family Trees,” traces her growing obsession with the story of “The Widow Ann Currier.”
In a favorite column from an early edition of Echoes, Glenna Johnson Smith defends the title of “Old Woman,” while Houlton native John Dombek uses his column to explore the significance of losing and regaining consciousness.
Founded in 1988, Echoes is published quarterly by Echoes Press in Caribou. Dedicated to rediscovering community, the magazine is available on newsstands in northern Maine and by subscription. Form information visit www.echoesofmaine.com
