Perhaps it's memories of my youth which as I age comes into extremely sharp focus, or perhaps it's the proximity of the Hartley Avenue home in which I grew up 80 years ago. Whatever the the reason, I find a certain spiritual peace when I take one of my very frequent walks along Newkirk Avenue and into my own "Sherwood Forest," Kuser Farm. Time has taken a server toll on the woods as I remember them. Many of the trees have died and been cut down,and others are long gone. I remember how we kids were like monkey as we climbed those long gone trees which once bordered the Kuser property with the township's Newkirk Avenue. There are memories of catching tadpoles and dodging sewing bugs on the pond, and very special treasured memories surround this local Hamilton treasure give me both a spiritual oneness with God, and also much needed exercise for my aging body. The above article captures only a very few of the memories I have for this wonderful place. Before computers came into my life in the early 1980's, I wrote a booklet with a titled I borrowed from Keats entitled, "KUSER FARM: A JOY FOREVER" It told of many of my memories of Kuser Farm along with a number of pictures I drew of the old Kuser GMC trailer, the "Alice in Wonderland" Beech tree that has since been cut down, the "Bear Tree" that was a scary sight that Don Slabicki and I thought was the bear that had escaped from the N.J. State Fair area. We were sure that bear was climbing up the tree. Memories are a gift God has given to his human creation. Some are sad, but for me, most of them are precious and spiritually refreshing.
