What memories are made of....

Give me some grass string bailing twine and it is the thing of memories for me.

This is the old walnut tree down home...it has swung more children and provided more hours of entertainment than any store bought item ever could.

It is in poor health now, and covered with ivy. It seemed a giant when I was a kid...we almost always had 3 or 4 swings in it. We all played on them...played tag if you can believe that. All the grandchildren swung in that tree at one time or another. Any cousins that came swung in them. Or any other kid....you could swing as high as possible and never have to worry about a swing set turning over.

Of course, they were made of grass string...usually the first few feet around the tree limb was a piece of chain. And not just light-weight chain either. It was stuff that had weight to it....I don't remember how they were attached to the limb. Then we would double or triple the length of grass string, I think sometimes we braided it, and tied it to the end of the chain.

I do remember playing in one one time, by myself, and the chain came loose and hit me in the head. I do remember crying, but I don't remember if I told mom or dad.

Our seat was a length of board, with notches cut in each end....

Now when I am out, I cannot help but see trees and think what a great place to put swings, or a tree house. Some are just made for children...but swings in trees are very seldom seen these days. They are there in the corner of my mind though...just one of those thoughts that are a pleasant to think on.

Morning song

Every day we were home, I awoke each morning to incredible birdsong. I think you would have to be there to believe it. I did managed to capture a couple of the main ones--the mockingbird and the cardinal. I thought the above photo a catbird, but not so sure.
Even though this one of the cardinal is blurred, I still like it. It is a cropped portion of the original photo.
I did not manage to capture the wrens though, and I think they were the most vocal of all. They had babies somewhere but I could not find the nest...even though I was close to it. The first night there one was really scolding me....but after that no matter where I looked I got no reaction. But I did see it come from around the house carrying the messes from its nest....

I also saw a couple chickadees, indigo buntings, bluebirds, and two or three types of sparrows. Oh, and what I assume was a swallow of some kind had a nest under the eave of the garage. I could never see it for more than a few seconds.
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Roger and I have both been exhausted since getting home. Yesterday and today has been sunny and beautiful with bright blue skies. There is a chance of thunderstorms moving back in Saturday night...which is the last thing we need. I heard on our local news that farmers are so far behind in their planting because the ground is so saturated.

I also have a flip side to the piece I posted for yesterday, but it is so negative I just haven't had the heart to write it. One of these days I will though...just not now. I have for the most part put it behind me and would just as soon forget it, but feel like I would not be truthful if I didn't tell that side.

Home to the hills

As we travel down the road that drives away and will follow us back home, no words can express how it feels as the mountains rise up to meet us....it has rained recently. Some highways are still wet, while other places show a few puddles. With an overcast sky, the sun only shows itself briefly a time or two. With no sun, the mountains are a richer green than they might appear otherwise....and in distant places there is a mist.

There is a mental mist that settles over me. Tears come to my eyes, but I blame them on my bangs getting in my eyes. It has been almost four years since I have been embraced by these green, green mountains of my youth.

I wonder what makes us the way we are. Of us children, I think I still feel a part of this land more than any of my other siblings that have moved away. For sure of the girls....my brother that lives close to Sarah feels much the same as me, but I am not sure it claims him as much as it does me. At other times, I think it is even more so with him.
So much has changed in some ways....in physical ways. The road by home has been paved....even the old rocky hill is paved. That is almost a miracle. Prior to paving, it was almost like trying to a car up a set of steps. No exaggeration. And if your car wasn't dirty when you turned down the road, by the time you drive a mile...it would have a thick coat of dust on it.

There are homes built in fields that I once played in...barns have burned down...fences have been removed. Other places have been taken over by a wild growth of weeds, bushes, and briars.

But the things that matter have not changed. People are still good neighbors, they are glad to see you, and willing to give a helping hand.

I must admit I hate seeing houses in fields I once was free to roam, but I still love the good hearted people that make up the majority of the population.
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We have been in Tennessee the past few days....I wrote the above and took those pictures the day I got there. I have been on line a few times, but never for very long and not on my on computer, so I did not mess with trying to post it till now.