Former resident reflects on change following move to North Carolina

Spectrum
 Friday, December 2, 2005
Former resident reflects on change following move to North Carolina
A lot of people seemed surprised when my husband and I decided to move to North Carolina. They wondered why we would take on such a big change at this senior citizen stage of our lives. Some people even came right out and told us not to do it. They didn't think moving just to be nearer our children and grandchildren was enough reason to disturb our roots, since younger people have a tendency to move when jobs or other circumstances demand it, they said. I can't say I fault them in their opinion because until a few months ago Herb and I felt the same way. Why rock the boat when the sailing is comfortable as is? But the fact that we missed the kids and that all five of them kept urging us to move closer to them made us at least consider the idea. The fact that they even found a house for us to buy clinched our decision to take the giant step we did. What's nice is that the people we were closest to in New Milford are still in touch with us and keep us up to date on what's going on, either by phone or by sending clippings from the local papers. We were sorry to hear about the Thrift Mart's problems and hope their move to a new location will be a big success. Also, I hate the thought of missing the AARP Christmas party at the Holiday Restaurant this year. I wish there were a way to get from one place to another like they do in the Star Trek shows (“Beam me up to New Milford, Scotty"). Obviously we're not that technologically advanced yet, but if we were, you can bet I'd be there. As sad as it was to leave the home and the people we grew attached to in New Milford, it was also hard to downsize years of accumulations. Then there were all the telephone calls to cancel local services and sign up for new ones, plus notifying insurance people, banks and anyone else one deals with, of the change of address. Just the frustration of getting past the automated telephone systems used these days is enough to frazzle the nerves when trying to transact any kind of business. Now that we're in our new house, we realize it's what we need. It has only one flight of stairs instead of three and only 12 windows instead of 33, and it's a much newer house than the one we were in before, making housework a lot easier. Besides that, we see the kids often now, and whenever some chore needs doing (like heavy objects lifted or lawn mowing, for instance), one or two of the boys show up to take care of it for us. During Hurricane Wilma's onslaught, our daughter and her family decided to be on the safe side by evacuating from where they live in Florida and coming to our house for a few days. We were delighted to see them and to have them see our new home. We feel we're adjusting to our move, even though there are still some things that will take getting used to, like the fact that over 100,000 residents live in the “small town” we thought we were moving to, and there are four- to six-lane roads to maneuver to get to any of the numerous shopping centers for supermarkets or any other place with which we need to do business. Thank goodness the roads and all the surrounding greenery are well taken care of and the traffic signals are well-organized, so Herb doesn't mind doing the driving. As for change in general, it's something everyone has to deal with whether staying in one place or moving to another. I have a friend in New Milford who still lives in the house where she was born, yet she's seen many changes over the years. Her quiet street has become a busy thoroughfare, and some of her property had to be sacrificed for widening of the street. She saw the town change from a place where everyone knew everyone else to a place where today she might go to the supermarket or to the Village Green and not see a familiar face. Seeing the demise of the local M&B IGA was also sad for her, although she realizes that nothing stays the same forever, and progress must go on. If the house or town we live in is not changed, just about everything else in our life is. Advances in technology alone sometimes make us feel that we can never keep up with all the new ways of dealing with everyday life. As we get older, our bodies change and don't respond or cooperate the way they once did, and there's not much we can do about it. Then there are the changes that take away our independence, like having to give up driving a car, or having to go to a nursing home. All change — whether it's by choice or not — takes a lot of adjustment, and the best we can do is to look for the positive side of it.  We have a Norman Vincent Peale magnet on our refrigerator that reads: “The secret of life isn't what happens to you but what you do with what happens to you.” -
A longtime New Milford resident, Terri Andersen moved from New Milford to North Carolina this fall. –

Thank You New Milford

Spectrum
 Friday, October 7, 2005
Maturity
Thank you so much, New Milford, for 36 years of happy memories
Never to be forgotten will be New Milford's enjoyable Village Fair Days, the concerts on the Green, the hometown parades our kids marched in, the talent shows we watched two of our boys win at New Milford High School, and the home we were blessed to live in for the last 36 years.
When my husband and I moved to New Milford in 1969, we had no idea what to expect. We came because we needed a home for our growing family and didn't want to be too far from Danbury, where Herb worked at the time. The first thing that impressed us was seeing mountains in the background of the railroad station off Bank Street, which made us feel we were in “the country." (My brother from California called my mountains “hills with trees” in comparison to his states mountains, but as former big-city people, hills with trees were not part of our past landscape, and we loved them.) When we drove a little ways up Route 202 and saw people skating on a frozen pond, we felt we were in a different era, one seen only in the movies. The view from the back windows of our house was equally impressive to us, with lots of trees, and spectacular sunsets. When railroad trains blowing their whistle came chugging along not far from our back yard, the kids couldn't run to a window fast enough to watch the trains go by. In those days, our city relatives took the passenger train to New Milford to visit us, and they, too, loved the rural atmosphere of this area. Then there was the Easter Sunday that was more like Christmas because of a heavy snowfall. Since the church we attend was in town on Elm Street back then, many of its parishioners left their cars home that Sunday and walked in the middle of the road to get to church. Instead of sporting Easter finery, everyone was bundled up in their winter coats and boots, and it seemed only natural for people to comment on the unusual weather. I remember loving the feeling that New Milford was such a friendly town. When spring arrived, the scenery was even more beautiful, with young trees budding and spring flowers blossoming everywhere one looked. I was blossoming, too, with baby number five on the way. Since New Milford Hospital was nearby, that's where I delivered, and I couldn't get over the wonderful care I got there. My first three children were born in a Brooklyn hospital where eight to 10 new mothers shared award, and the bathroom was down the hall someplace. Our fourth baby arrived in the middle of the night in Danbury, where I was left in a dark labor room all by myself, cringing with pain, only to have a nurse passing by in the corridor cheerily say, “Having a good one, eh?” and continuing on her way down the hall. (Husbands weren't allowed in the labor room in those days), When baby number 5 was born, in New Milford Hospital, a nurse's aide sat by my bedside the whole time, rubbing my back and offering words of comfort. The difference in care was like night and day. The following year (no, I didn't have another baby), I needed to find some part-time work when Herb's company cut out everyone's overtime. I wondered where I'd be able to find a typist job close by, with a company that had evening hours so Herb could watch the kids and we wouldn't have to hire a babysitter. Along came Mary Cleary, secretary at the school our kids attended at the time, and she suggested I apply at the local newspaper office, which I did, and I was told I could start working there that evening. Even though the typesetting machine was a little more complex than a typewriter, I managed to learn what I had to and ended up working there for the next 10 years. One day an editor of one of the paper's supplements found herself with an empty page to fill a few hours before deadline and wondered where she could find some copy at the last minute. When I told her I had some pieces I had written just for the fun of it at home, she told me to go get them and she'd see if she could use them. She wasn't at her desk when I came back to the office, so I just left them there and hoped for the best. When the paper came out the next morning, there were the two pieces I had written, byline and all, and I was ecstatic. When she asked me if I’d like to write for her on a regular basis, I was in heaven, and I have been writing articles or columns ever since. I'll always remember New Milford as the place I first got published over 30 years ago. I'll also remember the wonderful people I met along the way. Art and Norm Cummings were two of my co-workers in the '70s, as were a number of typesetters who are some of my best friends to this day. . Then there are the people I met when I worked for the state, the people I worked with at New Milford Thrift Mart (where I found some terrific bargains, too), the dedicated people at AARP the members of my church, and last but definitely not least, the wonderful people who run New Milford's super Senior Center. Never to be forgotten will be New Milford's enjoyable Village Fair Days, the concerts on the Green, the hometown parades our kids marched in, the talent shows we watched two of our boys win at New Milford High School, and the home we were blessed to live in for the last 36 years. By the time this is in print, Herb and I will most likely be in North Carolina, living closer to our children and grandchildren, but a part of our hearts will always be in New Milford.
Terri Andersen, who lived in New Milford for 36 years and has been a regular columnist in the “Spectrum Maturity” sections of The Greater New Milford Spectrum the past several years, is in the process of moving to North Carolina.