6 / matters magazine / summer 2017 READ & RECYLE Featuring Local People, Places and Things that Matter Since 1990 Please address all correspondence to: Visual Impact Advertising, Inc.© P.O Box 198 Maplewood, NJ 07040 973-763-4900 mattersmagazine.com MattersHello@gmail.com MattersMagazine©isownedandpublished by Visual Impact Advertising, Inc., P.O. Box 198 Maplewood, NJ 07040. Published monthly, Matters Magazine is free, with editions directly mailed 7 times a year to the residents of Maplewood and South Orange and distributed to businesses and surrounding communities totaling 17,000. Subscriptions are available to non-residents for $30 (U.S.) $40 (Foreign) annually. No part of the publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written per- missionfromVisualImpactAdvertising,Inc. CIRCULATION VERIFIED BY U.S. POSTAL RECEIPTS. PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ellen Donker ASSOCIATE EDITOR Joanne DiPasquale ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Rene Conlon H. Leslie Gilman Adrienne MacWhannell Gloria Morcilio DESIGN CONSULTANT Joy Markel ILLUSTRATION Erin Rogers Pickering GRAPHIC DESIGN ASSISTANT Christian Depue COPY EDITORS Nick Humez Tia Swanson CONTRIBUTORS Adrianna Donat, Malia Rulon Herman, Jessica Lituchy, Jamie Meier FOUNDER & CREATIVE CONTRIBUTOR Karen Duncan Matters heart of the matter I am a believer in the re- storative power of nature. Growing up, we lived on a decent-sized lot and I only had to walk across the cul-de-sac and through my friend De- nise’s back yard to get to the woods. In this case, the woods was High Mountain Park Preserve, containing nearly 1,300 acres in the Preakness Range, a northern continuation of the Second Watchung Ridge. Over the years, I would take many walks, and the woods became a place to think and discover. Once I had kids I made sure we all spent plenty of time outdoors. When the kids were small, I walked them around town in the triple stroller so much I just about wore out the tires. It was my way of changing the scen- ery when the house became too confining. Since it was a hassle to put three babies in the car while attempting to fold up and stow the stroller (which required that you take the seats out first), walking became my sanity. We went out in almost any weather. Given that the stroller’s seats went from front to back, I had to be sure to switch who got to sit in the front for the best view. But it wasn’t all about the view; there was plenty to sense other- wise, such as the row of overgrown hedges the kids liked to touch. It was fun to watch their tiny hands shoot out Freshening Up Benefits of the great outdoors BY ELLEN DONKER from the three seats to feel the soft leaves of the arborvitae. As the kids got older and too heavy to push in the stroll- er, we started walking together. It wasn’t quite as efficient with their short legs and need to stop at anything remotely interesting. And if walking to town initially seemed too daunting, the promise of a cookie at Village Coffee usually got them there, enabling a milestone to be met. Eventually, we took walks in the South Mountain Reser- vation and later brought our bicycles. When the kids com- plained that they were tired of going to the same place, I had to remind them that things were always changing. One day we’d see new flowers, hear the mating calls of the bull- frogs or have a new fallen tree to jump over. Nature never disappoints. These days, we don’t walk together the way we used to. At 17, the kids are naturally going places on their own, with the car being their latest personal mode of transportation. But I hope they’ll still rely on their legs to take them places they’ve never been, whether it’s to the solution to a present problem weighing heavy on their minds or just to the ice cream store.n