Keeping Score with Chip Ainsworth: Minutemen basketball — Thanks for the memories

Get Growing with Mickey Rathbun: Defeating August doldrums: The essential varieties of geranium to brighten your summer garden

Here we are at the half-way mark of summer. I don’t know about your garden, but mine is teetering on the brink of the slide into the August doldrums. At this perilous point in the season, I am ever-grateful for the hardy geranium, whose many species provide dependable cheer in the garden all summer long.  […]

Let them play: Why restricting unstructured exploration blocks critical thinking, stress management

Artist and long-time educator Don Fels would begin lessons with his class of 4-year-olds by placing a range of interesting materials on the table in front of them and then stepping back. He trusted that if he opened space for the children to play they would enter it, and he did not want to interfere […]

Faith Matters: Distracted … or present?

A couple weeks ago, Rev. Cindy and I headed out for a walk that, like so many of our conversations, wandered as naturally as the trail itself. We solved none of the world’s problems, but we noticed a few things that reminded us how easily we complicate our lives. Standing quietly in the marsh was a magnificent great blue heron. Those that know me well know that I have a special affection for herons. Over the years, they’ve become something of a personal reminder that I’m exactly where I need to be, God’s gentle nudge that says I’m in the right […]

Kiln it at 20: Hilltown 6 Pottery Tour fires up for its second decade of craft this weekend

Twenty years ago, Cummington potter Christy Knox had a vision: a pottery tour hosted by local artists in the Hilltowns. The inspiration struck after two of her friends had returned from a tour in Minnesota and raved about the experience. Meanwhile, Knox and her friend and fellow pottery, Constance Talbot, had recently taken part at […]

Beacon Hill Roll Call: July 13 to July 17, 2026

Beacon Hill Roll Call reports local representatives’ votes on one roll call from the week of July 13 to July 17. There were no roll calls in the Senate last week. Pets (H 5589) The House, 151-1, approved a bill that supporters say will strengthen animal welfare protections, modernize veterinary technician licensing and support responsible […]