Saturday, February 26, 2011

The barn was a witness...


The other day when the sun was shining, Greg and I took Olive our dog for a ride.  Sometimes, you know, dogs just need to go for a ride.  We are fortunate that we live in a place where just about any road you want to take takes you to someplace beautiful.  This time our ride took us a little bit northeast of our house and into the country. 
 
I always take my camera when we go for these rides.  It just wouldn’t be right not to.  I seem to gravitate to old barns as we travel along.  I love the way an old barn looks and often wonder how long it has set in place.  I love the distinguished decrepitude of the ones that seem to be standing against all odds.  And I love the utilitarian beauty of the ones that are carefully cared for. Old barns make me reflect on the way many of us used to live in this country so many years ago…life closer to the land where we used what was available to us. Barns make me think.

For sixty years the pine lumber barn
had held cows, horses, hay, harness, tools, junk
amid the prairie winds... 
and the corn crops came and went, plows and wagon
and hands milked, hands husked and harnessed
and held the leather reins of horse teams
in dust and dog days, in late fall sleet 'til the work was done that fall.
And the barn was a witness, stood and saw it all.
~From The People, Yes by Carl Sandburg





8 comments:

Unknown said...

I'm with you on barns. they just attract you to them, and for me it's just heaven on earth to stand in a barn. Whatever the energy is that lingers in a barn is just grounding, calming and simple.

TexWisGirl said...

Those are beautiful. You need to link them in to "Barn Charm" which I've seen linked up from several of the blogs I follow. (I bet if you googled it, you could find the host blog!)

TexWisGirl said...

Barn Charm is hosted by http://www.bluffareadaily.blogspot.com in case you want to share these with them!

barbara l. hale said...

Thanks, Mary Ann and texwisgirl! I will try to link to the Barn Charm blog and see what I can do.

magda said...

Barbara, hi
Welcome to my blog and many thanks for your kind words !
You blog has wonterful photos !!!
You are allready in my favorites blogs and i will follow you.
Best regards from Greece
Magda

barbara l. hale said...

Thanks so much, Magda. Your photos are wonderful, too. Greece looks so beautiful.

Stratoz said...

wonderful. a few years back the local chapter of the Audubon Society had a historic barn tour, where was my camera?

barbara l. hale said...

What?? You leave your house without your camera?! I do too sometimes and usually end up regretting it.