Vignettes of 9/11 10.0 in Amherst

Here, a few further scenes of the day of remembrance in Amherst.

Police Station flag at half-staff

preparations on the north end of the Common, in front of the 1889 Town Hall

officials confer

Firehouse bell

Fire Department officers at the ready

Peace Vigil packs up at the end of its weekly event

decorated planter on Town Common

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official flags fly this year

small flags planted by UMass Democrats and Republicans dot the downtown

flags in Kendrick Park

The Town of Amherst recently completed a lengthy public process to determine the future design and uses of the newly created park, expected to become a major gathering place at the north end of the downtown.

North Amherst farmhouse

I greatly appreciate ritual as long as it is tasteful and dignified. Particularly when it takes place as a true public action, it has the power to convey shared values and create or reinforce community. However the private and spontaneous commemorative gestures are often also compelling. I saw some on the way home after the official events downtown: a small flag mounted on a rural roadside mailbox, a flag flying from a house in an outlying area. Nothing grand, nothing that shouts: just small statements of mourning and belonging.

the end of the day