Author: Nancy J Bond (NS, Canada)
Contact: nbond at ns dot sympatico dot ca
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Categories: [discovery]  [nature]  

"Daffy-down-dilly came up in the cold,

Through the brown mould,

Although the March breeze blew keen on her face,

Although the white snow lay in many a place.”

~ A. B. Warner

This photo was taken on the farm that was my husband’s childhood home. By the time I had acquainted myself with this wonderful piece of property, tucked snugly away at the base of the Rawdon Hills, the days of making a living off the family farm were gone.

The barn had become a place where cracked harness hung from hand-hewn beams, collecting cobwebs and feeding the mice. The implements that were once used to turn the soil and harvest crops--the plows, the harrows, the harvesters--had all found new homes or had been delegated to their final resting place behind the barn. The father had retired...the mother still embroidered and crocheted, as much as arthritic hands would allow. Great Aunt had long since abandoned her quilting frame in exchange for long afternoon naps.

The property was a never-ending source of photo opportunities. Many portraits of my daughters were taken as they peeked through dusty windows, or climbed on the skeletons of machinery, deserted years before.

One afternoon in March, as was my habit and my joy, I took my camera and wandered around the open fields, still dotted here and there by the last of winter’s snow. How barren and forgotten the place looked!

Then, to my wonder, I spied this single daffodil which had managed, through sheer determination, to poke its lemony head through the tangle of dead grass. I was struck by the contrast between the two objects: the bright, hopeful yellow of the spring flower against the rust and weathered, grey wood of the deteriorating wheel.

I’m not even sure what the piece of equipment was now, and it doesn’t matter. Every time I look at this picture, I feel hopeful. Assured of a brighter day. Alive.

Other submissions by this author: :  Simplicity  ::  Autumn Tapestry  :

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