home is safe harbor
though it's far from any shore
out on the prairie
notes
The photo was taken on September 26, 2020. Text art and effects were added in Pixlr on September 9, 2023. You are welcome to share either or both images, but please credit Cara Hartley/Ornery Owl, and a link back to this blog would be appreciated.
The big yellow building is the house where my son and I live. The small yellow building is the post office.
The house was built in 1910. It was originally a hotel. It later became a house of ill repute, a hospital, a church, a boarding house for teachers, and a bed and breakfast. Before my son's father bought the place, it was owned by a maniac who was hoping to fix and flip it and did some terrible things to it. The structure itself is sound. It would have to be to survive the harsh conditions on the Northeastern Colorado plains.
Many people will look at these images and see them as grim and depressing. Our town has a spot on the ghost town registry and is in the top ten poorest towns in the state. The residents congregate at the food bank once a month. Rural areas tend to attract people who can't afford housing in the city or the suburbs.
People who live in rural towns often fall through the cracks. Nobody comes to ask us how we're doing or if there's anything we need. People who live in rural areas tend to be viewed as outcasts by the rest of society.
Still, if I were offered the opportunity to move out of this place and live in an upscale suburban patio home or urban penthouse, I wouldn't take it. I would stick out like a sore thumb. This place suits me, even if the other residents don't really get me either.
~Ornery Owl Has Spoken~
I am so glad that your home is a harbour. They all should be, and sadly for too many they are not. Thank you so much for joining us again too.
ReplyDeleteLovely, sobering thoughts. Thanks for sharing your reflections...and your haiga.
ReplyDelete