Some things just occurred in our neighborhood akin to muffled explosions: As reported in the Jan. 7 issue of the JP Gazette and in communications to those of us on its mailing list, Forest Hills Educational Trust longtime Director Cecily Miller and her excellent staff have exited their offices, and all of the much beloved cultural programs and events at Forest Hills Cemetery have been canceled unexpectedly.
Many of us who counted on these inspired gatherings as an important part of the yearly cycle of our lives in Jamaica Plain are in a state of bereavement over our loss.
We have been given surveys to fill out and submit in hopes that some of the most popular programs may be restored in due time, whatever that may mean. However, there is no interim director, and no clear reason has been given for this seemingly arbitrary disruption of a public trust that is such a large part of what makes us glad to live here.
As Euripides admonishes “…Death is a debt that every mortal owes/And of mankind there is not one aware/If through the coming morrow he shall live/The path of Fortune is a mystery…”
Let us, then, hurry to take action to restore the arts and cultural activities of Forest Hills Educational Trust, a source of joy and pride for so long in our wonderful community of Jamaica Plain.
Joseph Bergin
Jamaica Plain
The writer is a member of Carpenter Poets of Jamaica Plain, a group that has read in Forsyth Chapel in recent years as part of Forest Hills Educational Trust programs.