Daffodil days

Each spring we look forward to a visit to Laurel Hill Cemetery, 293 Beach St., Saco, for its outstanding display of daffodils.

My friend Joan Ashley of Falmouth called last week to alert me. She had just visited there to admire the thousands of daffodils in bloom. Ray, Harry and I made our trip there last weekend. We drove to the back of the cemetery, where many of the flowers are growing on the roadside and the banking, overlooking the Saco River. I talked with a lady, formerly from the Saco area, who now lives in New Hampshire, but she still returns to see these beautiful daffodils each spring.

I know that several of our readers make the Laurel Hill trip, too. The flowers will still be in bloom for a while this month, We always recite poet William Wordsworth’s lines while there. They are from his poem, “I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud” –

“I saw a crowd, a host of golden daffodils.”

Spectacle unrivaled

The Maine Charitable Mechanic Association’s April 21 lecture at the McAuley High School auditorium, Portland, was excellent. Entitled “Colorado River – Journey Into The Great Unknown,” and given by Gray Warriner, it took viewers down the river on the same trip as Major John Wesley Powell and nine men rowing in large open boats over rapids, by steep waterfalls, as they explored the Colorado and Green rivers in 1869.

It was a harrowing experience, and some of us viewers felt exhausted just watching all the hazards they encountered on that long journey.

They were warned by prospectors and Indian legends, but they persevered. Powell made the daring trip in 1869 and again in 1870, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, and he published reports on the geography, geology and ethnology of the area.

The Grand Canyon, where they explored, is, the Britannica says, “an immense gorge cut by the Colorado River into the high plateaus of the northern part of Arizona. The chasm contains between its outer walls a multitude of imposing peaks and buttes, of canyons within canyons, complex ramifying gulches and ravines. It ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles, its greatest depths lie more than a mile below its rim and it extends in a winding course from the head of Marble Gorge, near the northern boundary of Arizona, to Grand Wash cliffs, near the Nevada line, a distance of about 280 miles. Its most impressively beautiful section, 56 miles long, lies within Grand Canyon National Park. Through it the river winds for 105 miles.”

The canyon is a dull red, but each strata has a distinctive hue – pale buff and gray, delicate green and pink, and in its depths, chocolate-brown, slate gray, violet and other somber hues.

Geologist F. E. Matthes expressed its impact: “Whoever stands upon the brink of the Grand Canyon beholds a spectacle unrivaled on the earth.”

We who saw this film were very fortunate. Mr. Warriner took us via modern cinematography on the expedition that Powell and his men took. It was quite a trip for us.

Beats go on

The Warren Memorial Library in Westbrook presented a program for children, a concert given by Jordan Benissan, a master drummer from Togo, West Africa, on April 23. Many youngsters and parents attended.

I had read an announcement about the concert in the Portland paper and called to ask if I might attend. I was pleased to be there.

We expect drums to be beaten with wooden sticks, but, much to my surprise, Mr. Benissan, with three drums of different sizes and heights, in front of where he was seated, beat them with the palms of his hands. It was fascinating. He also sang as he played. Beside him were two smaller drums, and nearby were metal bells and wooden rattles with handles, and beads attached to the wide tops. He invited children from the audience to go up front and play the bells and shake the rattles as he played his drums and sang.

One of the librarians gave me a sheet with printed information about the drummer.

It said that Benissan is a member of the Ewe People, and was introduced to music and dance at an early age through ceremonies and rituals. He received his traditional music training from several West African master drummers. He has taught and performed for all levels, from elementary school through college level, and teaches at Colby College, Waterville. He has performed traditional African drumming and highlife music with master drummer Obo Addy at Colby College, and with the Portland Symphony Orchestra. He has recorded CDs, and his latest CD, “Let Me Play My Music,” was nominated for Best World Music Album by Phoenix magazine. His previous CD, “Beautiful Music from West Africa,” was nominated for the same honor.

Isn’t that interesting?

The next concert at the Warren Library will be at 7 p.m. Friday, May 23, with Sara Cox, Portland-based singer/songwriter.

These programs are generously funded by the Cornelia Warren Foundation.

Trinity taste

Today’s recipe is from Westbrook’s Trinity Lutheran Church cookbook, “A Taste of Trinity.” It was submitted by Myra Orach.

CHOCOLATE CHERRY BARS

1 package Pillsbury Plus devil’s food cake mix

21-ounce can of cherry pie filling

1 teaspoon almond extract

2 eggs, beaten

In a large bowl, combine first four ingredients. Stir by hand until well mixed. Pour into greased and floured 15-inch-by-10-inch jelly roll pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes until toothpick comes out clean from center of cake.

FROSTING

1 cup sugar

5 tablespoons butter or margarine

1/3 cup milk

1 (6 ounce) package semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a small saucepan, combine sugar, butter and milk. Boil, stirring constantly for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate pieces until smooth. Pour over warm cake mixture.

Ramblings