South Hadley, Mass. By Sarah Lovelace
South Hadley, Massachusetts - my hometown. Each time I find myself in my car rolling down the highway in the dark of the night, a sigh of relief and a smile always escape me no matter what my mindset is when I see exit 21A and a few miles later get onto I-90—the Massachusetts Turnpike. Cruising down the Mass Pike with my two companions this summer, they might find themselves wondering, what is in this Podunk little town that is so important we have to stop for?
Meet my parents: “Daddy D” - Mr. Richard L. Lovelace, and my lovely ma Mrs. Susan E. Lovelace, pictured here enjoying a Guinness on one Easter afternoon with me in Maynooth, Ireland, where I studied second semester my junior year. My life has been shaped and structured by these two wonderful people and the quiet town they raised me in.
Here, besides for the two of them, we will find Mount Holyoke College, my mother's alma mater. Across from this gorgeous campus awaits a quaint outdoor shopping center called the Village Commons, which features free concerts on Thursdays during the summer. Granted, we're arriving on a Monday, but we'll look past that for now.
Outside of my quiet little hometown lies, as far as I’m concerned, the center of all artistic activity in the whole state - Northampton, MA. This fun town holds such treasures as The Calvin Theater and the Iron Horse Theater, as well as Thorne’s Market - where we’ll eat some unbelievably good Herrell’s Ice Cream. We could try to check out a show at the Academy of Music, or just wander around and see what grabs our attention.
I look forward to our stop here for a farewell to my parents and a final look around my beautiful town and the surrounding area.
(From top) Photo by Absolut Dimitri courtesy Flickr.com; photo by Sarah Lovelace
