Hi, I'm Eric Ford for made here.

Onel Salazar, a filmmaker and outdoor sports enthusiast originally from Nicaragua, settled in Cabot, Vermont, seven years ago.

In his latest film project, Seven Years in Vermont, Onel observes the beauty in the changing Vermont seasons from his perspective and features other Vermont voices as well.

Onels film is a love letter to Vermont and its natural setting.

Onel was a recipient of the Made Here Fund, which he used to help make this film.

You can watch Seven Years in Vermont and other great made here films streaming on our website and through the PBS app.

Enjoy the film and thanks for watching.

Hello, this is Onel Salazar.

I'm here to show you guys how the season can affect the Vermonter and different type of weather.

Different, kind of beautiful changes here in Vermont.

With the spring time.

We got the summer time, we got the fall time, and we got the winter time.

Everything worked together, you know, all the seasons are complementing each other so we can have those beautiful changes.

So Vermont is a beautiful place.

And that was one of the reason I want to make this video.

I want to share my experience as a Latin American.

And also my point of view.

I want to show you guys how the season can affect a Vermonter.

I saw a lot of people getting so excited about this season and making new plans and start a new thing.

There's also people that can feel very sad and different type of season, especially in the winter time.

I fell in love with this place, with the surrounding, and I'm talking about all the beauty around me, all the environment, all the nature.

I am from Nicaragua, though Ive been living here for more than seven years.

In Nicaragua we don't have too much of a seasons.

We only have two seasons.

We got the dry season and we got the rainy season, which is not much of a contrast between seasons.

So when I first came to Vermont, it was in 2015.

It was a really nice time in the springtime.

It was very nice to feel that chilly weather, you know, it was still very cold for a Nicaraguan.

You know, everything was very new.

I remember a little bit of snow coming too, and I was very happy and excited to meet.

I saw the flowers coming up.

I saw the people getting up and do some planting in their gardens and they were buying.

Some starts to start some veggie gardens.

So it was pretty exciting for me.

So yeah, I think it was the perfect time for me to come to Vermont.

and then to see gradually the season change from there.

It's springtime.

It's such a beautiful season in Vermont.

You can start seeing all the slips coming out of the trees, all those beautiful flowers emerging from the earth.

And also you can start hearing all those birds, making some beautiful sounds and songs.

This video is a love note to Vermont.

There's a lot to do and go see in Vermont.

There's such a beautiful places to go visit.

I like to see Vermont as a piece of art that is constantly changing starting from the springtime all the way to the winter time.

So to make this video more interesting, I went up there and do some interviews and I thought, why not to have some Vermonters in this video?

How does it feel come from the winter time to the springtime?

It's a great feeling.

you know, you spend a lot of time inside in the winter.

It's cold when the springtime comes around after something like that, it's it's, rejuvenating.

And, you know, it's nice to see all your plants coming up to, like, your garden.

And, you know, the snow melts away and, you know, everything is so, gray and white in the winter time.

And then all of a sudden, all the color starts to emerge from the earth.

Here's a little bit of, let's say, a negative thing for the Vermont seasons.

I want to introduce Olivia Gay.

There's pieces of each season that I like.

Well, one of my favorite times is in April.

Everything is still flat.

The snow, so you can walk anywhere.

But now that we have epidemic of ticks and Lyme disease in Vermont, I don't do that anymore because the thing that I love to do, which is probably how I got Lyme disease, is to take some food and a book and just go into the woods and lie on a bed of reeds, which is like prime tick habitat, or to walk across lots through high grass, which is another prime.

So I don't do that anymore.

And I don't have that, experience anymore because I don't want to get sick.

This experience right here is actually very sad.

It's too bad that we have that epidemics of ticks, and just turning everything around.

But some people, you know, it's probably not just here.

It's very nice that you guys see that.

So, yeah, here's another opinion.

I do like the springtime.

I mean, definitely, you know, that's the, the muddiest, time of year.

so there are some challenges, but I do like seeing things change and knowing that, you know, that that summer's right around the corner.

I really enjoy, you know, all those answers, all those point of view that make me understand more, actually, about how they can see each one of those seasons and how they can enjoy it.

That's the beauty of it.

You know, all of us have a different thought.

Something else that I really enjoy about this spring time is, as a landscaper where we go and do some works for some people, like, some planting, some mulching, some different things to make those gardens so beautiful.

Well, I like to see those faces in the end, and we can see the smile on their faces.

And it is such a beautiful thing when they say, hey, guys, we got you spraying the spring in our house.

You know, that's some feeling.

That is something that I really appreciate as a landscaper.

So I will say that the springtime is some kind of relief.

It's some kind of a new beginning.

You know, it's just nice to know that the summer is coming.

And that is not just me.

It's a lot of people that I can see.

And I ask.

Summertime, I will say, is some kind of reward, you know, in my loop to see things.

I would say, that the summertime is like the, the peak of their reward of everything, especially long days.

Nice weather.

That's a good combo.

And plus, Vermont have a beautiful places to go rivers, lakes, ponds.

And if you like to do some fishing now, or different type of activities like swimming and stuff like that, there's a lot to do in Vermont and I can see that in people.

I can see that people get so happy about this summertime.

It's just it's just gorgeous.

For.

In the summer, there's nothing.

Nothing beats summer in Vermont.

It's beautiful.

It gets cool at night.

There's all kinds of fun things to do.

Awesome.

What does long days.

Ray?

Those long days are the best.

Yeah, yeah.

Nice weather.

That's when you don't read your book a lot and you don't get things done inside.

Because you're outside till 9:00 at night and enjoying it.

So this is my friend Randy.

This is a guy who get up there in the woods and start making trails for all of us.

All the bikers.

I went out there and recorded a little bit of what he do, and also I interviewed him.

So here's my friend Randy.

my name is Randy Allen, and, I worked with, Peter live at night as been building trails for him for like almost six years.

And you make a really awesome trail.

Those are the best trails I ever see.

thanks.

Yeah, yeah.

And those bridges, you know, like, it's just those wouldn't happen without all you guys and all those guys that just left.

What is the thing you most like about that summertime being in the woods?

Yeah, at least a couple hours every day.

What you will say to those people that feel sad in different type of seasons, what will be the the way that they can feel a little better?

You got to get out.

You got to get out and embrace it.

You just can't pull up and think you're going to feel better.

You got to do something.

Yeah.

Participated in some kind of activity.

But you will say in general about the seasons in Vermont, it's actually yeah, nice to go through all those changes.

It probably get boring if one seasons two or.

That's right.

But I very appreciate this a lot because there's people who like to go out there and there's some trails like this so we can have good times.

You know, this is something I respect.

the summers up here are perfect for me.

They're not too hot.

And coming from South Carolina, North Carolina, it's, 100 degree days.

Up here, you see a couple 90 degree days, maybe a week or so.

but then the nights are still 60s, sometimes 50s.

That's perfect.

When I first came to Vermont, you know, I was so surprised about the summer.

The days are really long, you know, like, 9:00 at night, and they still have some sunlight.

that was very amazing.

It was pretty spectacular.

It's more daylight.

So why not to go and do some fishing or or probably go to do some swimming, you know, all those kind of beautiful things to do in Vermont.

You got more room to do things, which is a great thing.

Very awesome.

The changing of the seasons in Vermont.

You'll learn to appreciate it.

I don't really know for sure how people feel in this whole time.

It's very interesting to understand how people feel and the full time people know that the winter is coming, but also it's nice to have it right here at the moment.

But it's summertime for sure.

It's such a gorgeous time.

It's such a beautiful thing to see.

I've never experienced a, a fall like I have up here.

The all these deciduous trees in the background, they they just.

This whole place turns.

They're just catches on fire.

It seems like it's.

The colors are are insane.

I mean, it's is absolutely gorgeous and breathtaking when this place is, at its peak, fall foliage, it's magical in Vermont is such a privilege place to be.

And the full time, it's just awesome to see the sleeps turning and beautiful, nice colors.

How is your feeling for the full time?

I love the fall.

I love the different colors.

I love the change of the season.

I love sort of finishing up the garden and cleaning it out and making it neat and tidy for the winter.

I love riding my bike when it's cool and crisp and the leaves are beautiful and it's a great season.

I will say that that change from the summertime to the full time, it can be good and bad.

There's people that can take it as a sudden moment.

You know, they probably do enjoy it, but they probably think that they're full time is kind of fast.

I people know that the winter is around the corner.

Actually, I can get sad in the fall because, I mean, I love fall, but it it's the transition and I get I, you know, wear shorts every day.

Hardly any clothes.

I know I'm going to miss it.

And I can get pretty sad in the fall until I really, you know, switch gears into the fall.

It's just nice to enjoy it with people you love and to see the leaves coming down from the trees, you know, pretty much in front of your face.

I like to hear the leaves, too, when I walk in.

I don't know if it's just me.

So this is winter in Vermont.

I notice in my interviews, a lot of people actually says that they really like the winter time.

There's people that can wait to go out there and do some sport and do some snowboard.

Whatever thing, you know, it can be a walk in the wood, it can be a hike, it can be a lot of different things.

So today's a privilege day is very bright.

And if you go out there and you know I'm do some kind of whacking, you can enjoy views like these.

You know it is it's a great it's a great, awesome, beautiful place.

So the wintertime it's, it's spectacular.

It's gorgeous.

What is your favorite season?

In my mind.

Oh, it's so hard to pick.

I definitely I do have to go with winter, though.

The skiing is just, you know, that's the best.

it's a real winter here.

and when it really does snow and being able to get outside and cross-country and snowshoe and downhill ski, there's so many amazing seasons in Vermont.

so it is hard to pick, but I would if I had to pick one, I would say Winter.

I notice that people can feel a little depressed during the winter time.

The winter is some kind of good and bad for people.

There's people that feel really happy about the winter time, but there are also people that feel a little sad about it.

You know, you don't see the sun for a long period of time, sometimes during the winter.

And, it gets it gets gloomy.

Everything's gray.

personally, I, I love the long winters and, always loved the winter.

And, that's nice.

Yeah, I, you know, it's an interesting place.

if you're if you're if you're into it, the winter time is, can be good or bad.

The beginning of the winter, the sunlight goes away around 5:00, you know, 430.

And it's kind of dark by that time.

We don't have too much sun in the winter time.

When I came here, I. I was overwhelmed in a good way, though.

But I remember the first snow, and I.

And I get up and start seeing everything coming down smoothly and quiet and everything was start packing up with snow and all the white thing and the nice chilly weather.

I kind of liked it.

It was basically nice.

And then I started learning about people, about seasonal depression, and also about how people really like the winter time in, in the short days.

And, you know, so now that I know how it is, all the experience I built, I just when I get there and have the best of every season.

I like winter.

Oh one winter.

I wasn't getting out and doing stuff, and I realized, you know, it's probably December.

So I realized I was getting depressed because I wasn't getting outside.

And doing stuff.

But the nights can get longer for me because I'm off the grid.

So I'm not using a lot of power and lights and, you know, so I'm up at sunrise and in bed, very dark, almost sorry to say it.

I can understand the depression too, because, sometimes you can feel a little down, so we just gotta take it how it is and we have to enjoy it how it is.

What's your favorite season in Vermont?

Winter.

You like winter?

Why do you like winter?

What do you.

Cause I cause I like the I think.

And then.

Oh, you like to hide them in the snow and then find them?

Yeah.

Do you like skiing?

Yeah.

Are you a good skier?

Yeah.

Or do you ski up okay?

Yeah, yeah.

People will say Winter and Vermont is really, really long.

And it is.

But if you like to snowshoe or you like to ski downhill ski or cross-country ski or walk in the snow or walk outside, if you have the right clothes and you have the right attitude, you can go outside and be warm, get exercise and enjoy the beauty of the winter.

You.

I would say in conclusion of this video is that Vermont have a such a beautiful seasons.

It's nice to see the contrast between seasons.

It's nice to see the weather change.

It's nice to see how people react.

And in different type of seasons.

So I just going to say, I hope that you guys, after watching this video are having some really good time.

You know, sometime we just need to remember for that that the best thing to do is to get outside and be part of of the activities in Vermont.

You know, there's a lot of things to do in Vermont.

It can be just, just to hang out with people, but also get out there and do some kind of good activities, good works for.

Here's some Nicaraguan, here's a Latin American who really likes Vermont and who's been understanding about how the system work.

You know, I've been here for more than seven years, and I realize that the seasons are such a beautiful gift that we have here in the northeast.

It's just a privileged place, you know, in the world.

Vermont is a beautiful place.

Thanks so much for everyone who was here.

Thank you so much for just be part of this video to make this video to become a completion.

It's just great and I feel so grateful.

I really put a lot of effort to this and I really liked it.

I really enjoy and learn a lot about Vermont.

Thank you a lot.

Oh, Nelson Lazard out.

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