To the editor:
There is so much hate going on. And I'm not talking about the devastating divide happening in our country. I'm talking about the Berkshire Museum. And it makes this beautiful community look silly and childish.
Because this is a very local museum, with the current issue tapping into a universal emotion like loss, it makes it a difficult divide.
But I must ask those who are spewing hatred, literally hatred, over social media, to please ask yourself if it's it worth it to throw fighting words into the ring about something that was a difficult decision. A decision that will make the community stronger.
Some of the social media fire is from people who might not even support the museum like my family and I do. So I ask you to please consider:
Do you live locally to the Berkshire Museum?
How often have you visited the museum in the past two years?
How often have you visited other local museums in the past two years?
Do you take children to the museum?
Do you get out of town to visit other museums (art, social history, science, etc.)?
Does your children's school visit the museum?
Have you sat on the "couch" in the aquarium lately?
Do you wish that the museum could instill a bigger sense of pride in the community?
How often have you utilized the Crane Room?
When was the last time you saw a film or a play in The Little Cinema?
Do you believe that change is hard, but sometimes necessary? That change is uncomfortable but the payoff here might be beautiful?
Do you understand that this project took two years of thorough soul-searching to figure out what is best for the community?
Hate speech is not useful. Embracing change, for the greater good, is hard. It takes a while to be able to see how beautiful change can be. People can grow and feel good with the new while still respecting the old.
Let's try it. Let's embrace the change and let go of the anger. And support the Berkshire Museum.
Sara Paul,
Hinsdale