"Memory Keeper" - 5" x 7" - Acrylic on board (Click here to bid) SOLD

I came across this old farmhouse while driving down a road on Northern Michigan's west coast a few weeks ago. I've loved farms since I was a child, so growing up here in the Midwest keeps me surrounded by inspiration. Old forgotten back roads, endless fields, endless skies. . . there's an aura and mystery about it all that fascinates me. This particular place, however, touched me when I saw it; so much that I pulled over and got out to look around.

The lonely emptiness that filled the abandoned house stirred various thoughts and emotions in me, and I couldn't help but begin wondering about its past: Who once lived in it? What were all these empty rooms onced used for? Was it ever filled with a family? Who were they, and what did they look like? Imagine all the countless things that this old, dilapidated stucture witnessed and experienced. All the different memories it holds. It's moments like this when you wish walls could talk!

It was amazing to walk around and see it from all sides. The grass was almost waist-deep in certain spots, and I always had this fear that I would fall into some kind of deep hole! But there was nothing like that sweet smell of the tall grass on that summer day. Most of the windows had no glass, so I was able to look directly into the lower level of the house. Everything seemed like it was on the verge of collapsing. All of the original curtains still hung, and because many of the windows were open, a tattered one was completely twisted around the branches of a nearby tree. The roof was rusted, and the walls were dry and brittle when I touched them.

I could have sat there for hours just thinking and sketching if it wasn't for the constant traffic roaring just within feet of it. It was located right on a small intersection, so I couldn't leave my car for very long. Thank goodness I had my camera with me. I could only shake my head at the gas station and billboards that were beginning to sprout up around it. Though there were working farms several acres down, I knew that with its location, and the sale sign in front of it, that someday soon this house won't be here anymore. It may not even be here now. No doubt that commercial development will soon swallow it up. It truly makes me sad when I see these little pieces of our history begin to disappear. Quiet, rural areas are fast becoming parking lots. I can only hope that things will slow down and places like this house will be preserved for future generations to learn from and enjoy. (Click on the image to see a larger view)