Reminiscence

Magnolia Trees! As I stood beneath the huge magnolias and breathed the scents of the South in this arboretum, the place took me back to memories in Georgia: the shade of the sturdy leaves that grew low in our Perry, GA yard when my sons were two and four; the trees that gathered around Sweetheart Circle on the GA Southern campus, watching students come and go; the ones that adorned every Southern home of more than fifty years of age in my hometown; and the ones that I saw scattered along I-16 with white blooms beaming in the Georgia sunlight! As I reminisced, not specifically, but with an overall general sweet feeling, I realized that I missed painting magnolias…and hydrangeas…and camellias and azaleas.

And yes, as a matter of fact, I do live near Waco, Texas –home to “Magnolia Silos” and such. But a single magnolia, planted in the yard of a newly renovated home has a long way to go to reach the heights and depths of these ancient magnolias of a more southern latitude.

You have seen me painting cacti and prairie grass and wildflowers in these latter years. And I am loving the varied perspective it brings to an artist to be in a new location. ( Be on the lookout for the next solo show – September 23 – November 4 – in Temple, TX. It is entitled “From the Ground Up!” and the paintings are all Texas inspired!)

This painting was just something I had to get out of my system. A painting of a magnolia, or a seagull on the coast, or a tree covered in Spanish Moss connects me to my roots. And I breathe deep and reminisce.