Mountain Views News          Saturday, March 5, 2016

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, March 5, 2016 


Walking Sierra Madre…The Social Side 

by Deanne Davis


“Without its flowers, wisteria would probably not 
be planted much, if at all..”

Joshua Siskin

We weren’t walking Sierra Madre this morning, we 
were on our way to do a bunch of errands. Driving 
along Grandview we saw the most gorgeous hedge 
of wistaria* we’ve seen so far this year. It’s just west 
of the Stonehouse property and well worth a trip up 
there... besides, you might see deer hanging around 
under the trees, which we have seen twice in recent 
weeks. This hedge, with thousands of blossoms, 
leads us to believe the Wistaria festival will be 
fabulous after all, with blossoms beyond compare. 
It’s coming right up, March 13th. (*the ordinary 
world spells it “wisteria.” We in Sierra Madre, being 
rugged individualists, spell it “wistaria”)

 Have been hanging onto the most wonderful 
article on wisteria, which ran in the Star News last 
year, Saturday, May 2, 2015, by Joshua Siskin who 
was writing the Gardening column. Joshua has 
given me permission to use his work and I quote:

 “It has been several weeks since wisteria stopped 
blooming, but still I think of it. Its curtains of 
opulent lavender-violet flower clusters are hard 
to forget. All year long, except for a single brief 
moment in late winter and early spring, wisteria is 
a vine that shows nothing of ornamental interest. 
It does serve a utilitarian purpose in covering an 
arbor and thus provides shade for those strolling 
or dining al fresco (or enjoying our central pergola 
at city hall) below. But without its flowers, wisteria 
would probably not be planted much, if at all.

 I think that people, too, have this wisteria-like 
quality. We might go for months living a drab, 
humdrum sort of existence until we suddenly flower 
brilliantly for a brief, yet memorable moment. 
Indeed, most of the time we do our jobs well and 
provide assistance and sustenance for others. Yet, 
how often do we bloom, giving something that, 
coming from our best and truest self, delights 
and inspires the world around us? Long ago in 
Lithuania, there was a rabbi named Yisrael Salanter 
who said that “the greatest distance in the universe 
is the distance between your head and your heart.” 
When our noblest and most idealistic aspirations, 
those that we carry around in our minds, somehow 
reach our hearts, that is when we truly blossom.”

 Nice! No wonder I kept it in my calendar for 
March!

 Do most of you get the newsletter from the 
library? I never knew how our library got its start, 
till I read this month’s Library Newsletter: 

 “It was 1886 and the settlement at the foot of the 
San Gabriel Mountains had only just begun when 
the idea for a Library was conceived. Without land, 
money or books – but with a love of learning and 
literature and a dream for the future of their town, 
40 families pooled their resources and talents and 
the Sierra Madre Library Association was born 
– with city founder, Nathaniel Carter, one of the 
original incorporators. Our library was the 4th 
established in Los Angeles County and the 10th 
in Southern California. Many other communities, 
larger and wealthier than ours, did not have such 
an institution, but then the dream of intellectual 
progress was born early here and has remained a 
viable force in the City’s growth. A Library is much 
more than a building or monies in the book budget. 
Our Library began as the dream of a people who 
loved their town and believed in its future. It has 
continued to grow and improve because these 
people still feel much the same way. Without them 
and their dreams, their help and support, the Sierra 
Madre Public Library would not exist.”

 I’m getting my I Love My Library sign today! 
It’s free and we need it in our yard where dahlias 
and zinnias are ready to burst into bloom and the 
gerbera daisies are huge and vivid. My wistaria is 
about 10 inches tall with tiny little leaves and in 
about 37 years will grow big enough to drape over 
the fence and maybe even bloom. Look for wistaria 
in bloom...it will sneak up on you all over town these 
days. Look for something beautiful everywhere you 
go this week...if you look, you’ll find it!

 Check out my book page on Amazon.com: 
DeanneDavis@Amazon.com. You might like my 
blog, too: www.authordeanne.com

READERS WIN ART & ESSAY CONTEST AT THE 
SIERRA MADRE LIBRARY


Sierra Madre, CA. – March 1, 2016 – Students in 
grades K – 8 are invited to enter the Library Art 
and Essay contest, starting March 1, 2016. This 
year’s theme is: Readers Win! @ Sierra Madre 
Public Library and entries should reflect the theme 
as closely as possible. Entry forms are available at 
the Public Library, on the library website, and at 
schools in Sierra Madre.

 Children in grades K – 2 will create a drawing 
showing how they win by reading books from the 
Sierra Madre Public Library. Students in grades 3-8 
will write a one-page essay of (250 words or less) on 
how they win by reading books from Sierra Madre 
Public Library. 

 Entries are due by March 31, 2016 at the Library 
and the winning entries will be presented on April 
14. Winning work will be displayed in the Library 
and winners will receive a certificate and cash prize 
at a ceremony in their honor.

 Local organizations supporting the Sierra Madre 
Public Library Art & Essay Contest with funding for 
the cash prizes are: Sierra Madre Rotary Club, the 
Spero Foundation, Sierra Madre Kiwanis, Friends 
of the Library, the Sierra Madre Community 
Foundation, and the Sierra Madre Civic Club.

 Read, Discover, Connect @ Sierra Madre Public 
Library, 440 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, 
CA 91024, (626) 355-7186, www.cityofsierramadre.
com/departments/library

SHARE SOME 

GOOD NEWS! 

 “The Kindness of Strangers” feature encourages readers 
to share their stories. I can assure you, they will be 
uplifting especially in contrast to all the the challenges 
and issues we have to deal with daily. So, if you have 
something you would like to share, please submit it to: 
editor@mtnviewsnews.com. It doesn’t matter where you 
were or when it happened. Share your good expeiences in hope that it might bring a little joy and/
or inspire someone.

 

-Susan Henderson, Editor/Publisher MVNews


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com