Sweet Constance

Connie Sweet thinks she has lost everything that matters after her daughter dies and her marriage dissolves, and she retires from teaching high school science to live quietly on what’s left of her farm. But when a wanna-be farmer buys a portion of her land to develop into an organic vineyard and then, outrageously, insists he’s improving the place, Connie discovers she does still care, and now she has nothing left to lose. Many neighbors in the small rural community celebrate the development. Vineyards raise property values, and the man is wealthy, educated, attractive, and single. But Connie has lost interest in community, and only keeps company with her neighbor Ellen. On Ellen’s urging, Connie teams up with Ellen’s troubled, artistic nephew Dylan. He needs something to do, and Connie sets him to surveying the land before it is logged. At first, she just wants him out of her way, but as he becomes involved with the forest and its wildlife, Connie can’t ignore the extent of the losses they are facing, losses that are caused by a person without knowledge of the region or its life. It’s not fair. When Connie has to look at the situation through Dylan’s eyes, it looks downright intolerable. What is home, and who does it belong to? What are our obligations to our neighbors - human and non-human? As Connie tries to explain to the new farmer, we all belong to the places we live. In the end, we rise or fall together.