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Picture of the day -
April 10, 2008
"Dad, I'm leaving home."
Photo courtesy of
Ali Taylor.
"Hard times are real, there's dusty fields, no matter where you go.
You may change your mind,
'cause the weeds are high,
where corn
don't grow."
In the
Travis Tritt song "Where Corn Don't Grow",
the above words are the tearful response given by a father to his
teenage son after hearing the news that he plans to leave home and
seek a life far away from the farming community in which he grew up.
Of course the boy's dad knew something that he didn't: No matter where we lay our
heads, as we live our lives we're going to have to deal with
troubles and trials - in other words we're going to have to "pull
weeds".
As humans, we cannot avoid the burden of having to endure sad times
simply by moving to another location. This boy's dad knew that while
it's true that his son might never have to chop weeds out of a dusty
field anymore, he would soon discover that there are "weeds" to chop
regardless of where you live or what you do for a living.
The first time I heard this song it brought a tear to my eye. You
see, my dad and I had a similar talk - not once, but several times
in the last year or so before I left home. I simply couldn't
see myself being happy living here in the mountains of southwestern
Virginia when there was a whole new world just waiting to be
explored. Surely there was a lot more to life than growing a garden,
"working" tobacco, and driving on roads so rough that they would wear
a car out after only 60,000 miles.
When I finally left the hills and hollers behind, I did so with the
feeling that I was about to embark on a new way of life - a life of
relative comfort and leisure compared to the ones most people in
Widener Valley were living. Over the course of the next several
years I found myself living in a number of places around the globe,
but even in the cities I was constantly having to deal with a bunch
of pesky "weeds". It didn't take long for me to realize that
everywhere I went there would be troubles just waiting for me to get
there.
As always, my
"dumb
daddy" had been right. I must say that although I have seen a
good bit of the world, I have never found a single place where
life is better than it is right here in these hills and hollers of
southwestern Virginia. Sure, the weeds are high. But they're my
weeds, and I'll take them over all those others any day.
About the photo: Before automobiles became as ubiquitous as
horseflies in a pasture field, most people traveled from place to
place by train. Countless young men and women have climbed aboard a
train with dreams of escaping the "weeds" of their home towns, but
my guess is most of them longed to "go back home" at one time or
another. Some did and some didn't, but either way they undoubtedly spent the
rest of their lives "pulling weeds".
Visitor Comments...
Name: Phyllis Helton
Town: Bristol, VA
Isn't it amazing how much smarter our parents get as WE get older.
Name: Rick Rouse
Town: Meadowview, VA
Yes Phyllis, it is.
Name: Ron Trees
Town: Spokane, WA
Hi Rick,
I have to say that although I have seen many great pictures on your
site, today’s is one of the best ever. This one is just awesome. I
honestly like everything about it. And again, your words are very
thought provoking. I can’t say I like all of the thoughts that they
brought back to memory, but how true they were!! Thanks so much.
Take care, Ron
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