Heartbreak Undone

Last year I, and many other people I know here in Maynard, were heartbroken when we learned that the Mathison family was leaving to go back to the Carolinas, where they are originally from. Maybe you don't know them and are wondering why I would dedicate a whole blog post to a family who was moving away. I mean, people move, right? What's the big deal? But this family was special in the way that they embraced the community. They seemed to embody the whole big feeling that I have about this place.

I met Val and Brent at a mini Open Studios in ArtSpace Maynard back in 2015. I did what I always do when I meet new people in the area—I asked where they live. They told me that they had recently moved to our small town and were really excited to be here. I'm always curious, so I asked what brought them specifically to Maynard—I've been here so long that it's good to get a fresh perspective on our town. They talked about needing to move to this area and about how their realtor drove them around to all the local towns. They both talked about passing through Maynard, looking at each other, and both articulating that this was it—this was the place. That they just knew it. I think they stayed in my studio for more than an hour that day, just talking about the local community and how they were getting their footing in this new place.

In the three years that they lived here, the family was quick to get involved. From government, to family matters, to the arts—there was so much to be involved in and they just jumped right in. I was amazed. At some point, after they had been here maybe two years, I asked how much of their love of the town was really just about how they embraced it. My thought was that maybe they would have found home wherever they were because that's who they are. They both insisted that this wasn't the case, and that what we have here in Maynard is something special.

Fast forward to late spring 2018 when they told their Maynard friends that they needed to move back to the Carolinas for work. There was sadness in the community they had built for themselves. Even they struggled with going though there were so many positives to the move. I, for one, tried to make the best of it. Brent and I talked about how they'd move back someday, how maybe it wouldn't be so long, how maybe they could vacation here. But the sadness was still there. I felt a need to blog about it, but every time I tried I struggled over what I would even say.

After they moved, I told Brent that I wanted to do a blog post about their family and what it means to be part of this community, and how hard it can be to leave. He approved. I kept putting it off, and putting it off. I'm glad I did. After one year away, they decided to move back. They had a lovely house in the south. They had family nearby. There was the job. Still, they wanted to be back here with all of us, and I am so glad for it.

The connections we make to each other are foundations that support us and make us feel like we belong here. Communities are built by people, one at a time—that's you and me.

Welcome back home, Mathisons!