As the reality of disappearing barns from America’s landscape takes hold, I think I’m captivated by the soul of something profoundly American … something of the back-breaking, sweaty toil that pioneered a nation … something nostalgic and slightly romantic that  I see in these cast-aside buildings.  ( The Love of Barns, part I)

I’ve lived in a large metropolitan area for over 30 years and am enamored by the city … but not nearly as enamored as I will forever be with the country.  Country life feeds my soul … it inspires me not only to dream but to labor … to strive for the values that are truly lasting in this short journey we call life on earth.

For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
Tulip Fields LaConnor, WA

Barns scream of hard work.

For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
That silo, though. (This barn sits south of Spokane WA off of Highway 27)
For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
Not a barn, but this old stone house in LaCrosse, Washington is just as fascinating and is a reminder of the pioneers that went ahead of us.

Relics of the past, these buildings of the pioneers remind us that every generation dreams dreams.

For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
This one feels like it’s right out of a scene from Little House on the Prairie. (Bannack State Park, MT)

I look at the price paid by those before me who gave everything to find a place in this world, and I ask myself, “Do I just live or do I ADVENTURE?”

For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
Micah, WA is a tiny industrial town famous for its Elk herds, farm lands, and now sadly … even a school shooting.  I wonder if the values of the past could heal the wounds of the present?

What do we become when all of the barns come down? What kind of a society is it that no longer needs the secrets of a barn?

For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
With its back to McCroskey State Park, this old barn (still in use) keeps watch over the Washington – Idaho border.

If there are really mansions waiting for us in heaven, I hope mine comes with a barn that I get to help build and then put to use.

For the Love of Barns - Lovelier Still
Idaho Panhandle. Makes you wonder what this was all about.

Think of what we’re missing in our culture: barn raisings … places to hide the messes in our lives … places to make more messes so that life can keep on giving …. refuges for wounded owls and feral cats. (The Love of Barns, Part I)

 

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