TIMES RECORD • December 2, 2022
Each of us likes to feel located. Maps with contour lines and the blue traceries of perennial and seasonal water have long been favorites. A relatively new favorite comes from Maine’s Geologic Services: LiDAR mapping, product of an intense barrage of laser beams that “read” the earth closely, offers also an overlay of contour-lines, set at the pleasing interval of two feet. Located in a ‘shed, we are no longer isolate, and, as we trace water’s flow, it becomes clear that the touch of what we do reaches all the way to the sea. We are of a place. This seems a town moment when we can begin to see ourselves as living in a ‘shed rather than (or in addition to) living at a number on a street, a shift to holistic thinking with our many connections arrayed around us. It truly can be a watershed moment. ~ Sandy Stott