Picture This . . .

“You belong among the wildflowers”
Wailin Jennys

At the beginning of the year Matt and I decided to take the first step on our long-held dream of moving to western North Carolina. Our shared criteria for the property hunt included at least five acres and a reasonable proximity to a major (Charlotte) airport. I included three must-haves: a stream or creek, some woods and some open field — for wildflowers.

At the end of April we crossed a little creek to a piece of land that had my heart singing the familiar refrain from The Sound of Music. Running along the creek were several acres of open fields — I could envision a flower filled meadow humming with bees and birds. The land rose (but not-too-steeply) up a slope and turned to woods. Across the fields to the north was a view of Greenlee and Hoover Mountains. Check, check, check, and a view too!

It was not the smoothest negotiating process but on June 19th we took possession of this lovely piece of land, and everything on it. That’s the part of the scene that was easy to look over in the just-imagining-what-could-be stage. Because in addition to having the creek, the woods, the field and the view the property had a huge mess. A HUGE mess, as in a derelict double-wide trailer, decades of accumulated junk, and overgrown vegetation that was much more visible in June than it had been in April. Fortunately our realtor directed us to an excellent contractor — the hero in the first few chapters of this story.

A colony of cats was living in, under and around the trailer. The previous owner had been feeding them. I counted ten, most of which were older kittens. I was having no luck with the various rescue organizations I reached out to — they’re all swamped and I wasn’t local, and was losing sleep over the fate of these cats. John, the contractor, posted about the situation to Facebook and someone came forward to trap the cats and take them into foster care.

Almost everything -- the trailer, falling-down sheds, and dumpsters full of trash were hauled away by John and crew. But being a scavenger, I combed through the mess before they got started and pulled out anything that was in the least bit interesting or reusable. If something has potential, if I can see how it might be up-cycled or repurposed, I’ll keep it. There was one salvageable building, a small workshop, and that’s where I stashed the “treasure”. I may not get to follow through on my various visions for all of it — which is, I admit, very likely. I may leave piles of stuff for someone else to eventually sort through but at least they will be well organized.

The bridge to cross the creek and access the property was in really rough shape. Ten years of neglect and Hurricane Helene had all but worn its foundation away. John built a new bridge from an old (flattened) railroad car (Who knew that was a thing?) It took a couple of tries to get it right, apparently, but it’s looking good. We couldn’t be out there to cheer him on, but we got regular reports from both John and our new neighbor, Tony. We’ve also (along with more than 100,000 followers! ) seen project highlights on John’s Youtube channel @officialjohnseaman

So that’s where we are now — a 20 acre blank slate with two level, buildable sites and a brand new RV (ours) so we and the dogs have a place to stay in the meantime. My neighbor has offered to mow and disc the field this fall and I’ll sow wild-flower seed.

In other news, on August 23rd Art-o-mat is holding a Swap Meet in Winston-Salem and I’ll be there! More than 60 artists will gather to trade art in the morning, from 12:30-2:30 they’ll open to the public for an art sale. I’ll have pieces from my first and new Art-o-mat collections — Views and Blooms, and other work too. Having shut down my booth at the Cotton Company, I have a lot of inventory on hand. I’ll participate in this sale in August, and I’m also exploring other sales ideas for the fall.

The mountain property project is obviously a massive, long-term endeavor. It feels good to have at least crossed the starting line in that it’s been purchased and cleared. I know exactly how I want it to look in the end, but now — like with a blank canvas, comes the tricky part of passing through all the developmental stages in between start and “finish”. And this project might, like paintings sometimes do, go in a different direction from what I first imagined. But that’s ok because, for me, the thrill is in the process of making it be.

I love it when someone says “I want to . . .” and then shares a vision that’s been forming in their mind. Whether it’s a thing, an event, a trip, a place — it’s always inspiring to share in another’s imaginings. If this is you, I hope you’ll go for it! The world is richer for every effort to make the only dreamt about real.

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