Blue Bottle TreeA friend called Friday afternoon and asked if we would like to drive to Eureka Springs. He was "searching for his roots" he said. "Sure", we said. School had let out early in anticipation of an ice storm that fizzled before reaching us. In our view, a snow day or even part of a snow day is considered a free day and shouldn't be used for work or normal activities. Sounded like an adventure to us!
Actually he wanted to find his grandparents' farm--a place he remembers visiting in the summers as a young boy over 40 years ago. Some of the places he had seen in earlier trips to the area seemed to bring back memories--the old concrete bridge over the Kings River at Trigger Gap, the name "Rockhouse", and just that feeling of "being there" at some other time.
We took Rockhouse Road off of 62 in Eureka Springs. It is a back road that leads to the Kings River area, and then on to Berryville on 221. All he had to go on was a memory of the neighbors' big dairy barn and their unusual name (which must have been German), swimming in the creek across the pasture, and fishing on the concrete bridge at the Kings River. We turned off the pavement onto a gravel county road that lead through an old farming area with lots of fences in need of repair, barns that had seen better days, and pastures with several cows lazily grazing on round hay bales.
We passed by a large old barn with an old farmhouse nearby. He stopped, studied it ,and said "Eureka! This is it"!
The old house showed some neglect, but was still occupied. There were chickens in the yard, a little pen with a small, probably orphaned, lamb basking under a warm heat lamp, and a very large dog, who watched warily as we stopped the truck long enough to get a quick picture. As we looked across the lane, we were surprised to see the old German neighbor's name on the mailbox. Our friend instinctively turned down another old road that ended at the swimming hole on the creek. The old bridge leading to the other side was blocked with a threatening sign warning folks of the hazards and dangers (and law suits) of even thinking about crossing over to the other side. Time to turn back!
It is our friend's plan is to come back at a later time. Maybe after a phone call to the number he located online when he entered the name and address from the old sign that was nailed to the tree by the drive. Right now it is enough just to find the actual place that brings back so many memories.
The old home place wasn't the only thing that got our attention. Further down the road we started seeing little stacked-stone statues in the pastures, on the side of the road, and in the yard of an old, but still lived-in, log house. (I have no idea what the stone statues are, but I will find out more.)From the condition of some of the logs, it was apparently very old. By studying the logs, one could tell that new rooms had been added from time to time. The last addition showed fairly new log walls. Since we are kind of partial to log homes anyway, the structure was worth a short stop. No one home, so we didn't tarry.
The log house and stacked stones weren't the only things that caught our attention. Blue bottles! Lots of blue glass bottles! Piles of blue bottles! Some were decorating a roof line of an shed, some were placed around in the old flower beds, and some were hanging on a "bottle tree" in the middle of the yard.
I remember seeing bottle trees in yards in south Arkansas when I was young. Bottle trees are of African origin and were originally placed in yards to ward off evil spirits. The spirits were supposedly captured in the bottles so as not to enter the house. Now 'a days, they are considered "yard art", and one can even order pre-constructed, metal bottle trees --complete with colored wine bottles--online.
A bottle tree design has been forming in my head since I read an article about them in a garden magazine some time ago. This one in living color has brought it back to mind. We often have interesting wine bottles left in the cabin trash. I think I will recycle them and make my own version of a bottle tree. If you come to Mountain Springs Cabins this summer, you will most likely see one growing in my backyard. Only joyful "spirits" allowed!
I remember seeing bottle trees in yards in south Arkansas when I was young. Bottle trees are of African origin and were originally placed in yards to ward off evil spirits. The spirits were supposedly captured in the bottles so as not to enter the house. Now 'a days, they are considered "yard art", and one can even order pre-constructed, metal bottle trees --complete with colored wine bottles--online.
A bottle tree design has been forming in my head since I read an article about them in a garden magazine some time ago. This one in living color has brought it back to mind. We often have interesting wine bottles left in the cabin trash. I think I will recycle them and make my own version of a bottle tree. If you come to Mountain Springs Cabins this summer, you will most likely see one growing in my backyard. Only joyful "spirits" allowed!
You shall go out in joy...and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Is. 55:12
