Winter Refuge in a Another Town

I finally gave in.

Admitted I was tired of the snow.

The endless winter.

The unrelenting cold.

But while many of our neighbors seek refuge in the Arizona desert once winter tightens its grip on Phillips County, Barb and I felt no need to leave Montana. Balmy Livingston is good enough for us.

We bought a small house there on a quiet street, and while Malta remains home for now, we’ll probably eventually end up in Livingston.

We have family there including a dozen grandchildren and another on the way.

It’s bittersweet, however, to even think about leaving Malta. I’ve lived there in the same house longer than I’ve lived anywhere else.

We fled Bozeman 17 years ago in search of Montana, and found it again on the Hi-Line where cows still outnumber people and newcomers remain a rarity.

Unlike many areas of the state that are seeing record growth, Malta’s population has been in decline for decades. The town has more than 500 fewer residents now than it did in 1990. That appealed to me 17 years ago and it still does today, but I have to be a bit practical. We’re getting old, and access to medical care is something we have to consider. Malta lost its only doctor last year, and the nursing home recently closed its doors.

We haven’t yet figured out where we’ll spend our time. Although the hunting around Malta isn’t what it used to be — folks would be wise to look elsewhere — I can’t imagine being anywhere else come next September.

We also have a cabin on Fort Peck Lake that occupies a lot of our time from spring until fall.

That only leaves winter.

So, at least for a few months a year, it looks like we’ll be joining the throngs headed south. We’re just not going nearly as far.

Parker Heinlein is at [email protected]