richardhowe.com

It’s been a while since I wrote about my Sunday walks. This morning I was back in Back Central or, as I like to call it, “the Garden District.” Every house, it seems like every house anyway, has something growing, from heavy-duty dark-red roses in front yards and flowers in tall plastic kitchen trash containers filled with soil to full-scale vegetable gardens thick with beans, sprouting corn, tomato plants, and all kinds of flowers. In season, I like to check out the progress every couple of weeks. The grape vines are running through the arbors like crazy with the beginnings of bunches of grapes already showing. Make time to take a look. My walking companion and I met a member of the neighborhood’s famous Portuguese band carrying his clarinet in a small case (the instrument broke down in five pieces). The band was scheduled to play at 11 am for a church procession coming down Central Street. We also met a couple of older gardeners who were checking their plants. There is a remarkable “growing” culture in the neighborhood that makes it a distinct section of the city. Small patches of soil yield a bounty of food and flower-beauty.

John Whelan and Donna He’bert: The Irish-French Connection will perform Wednesday, June 23, at 7.30 pm, at Immaculate Conception School Hall, 218 East Merrimack Street, as part of Lowell’s Franco-American Week. The performance, honoring Lowell’s French-Canadian and Irish-American heritages, is sponsored by Lowell National Historical Park. All are invited for an evening of award-winning fiddling, legendary Irish button-accordion playing, brilliant flat-pick and finger-style guitar playing, and singing of Gaelic, English, and French songs.

Parking is available behind the school. The free concert follows a traditional ham-and-bean supper for which there is a charge. For details about the meal and other events during Franco-American Week, visit http://francolowellma.com/

(Thanks to Lowell National Historical Park for the News Release)