26 June 2010

Bamboo Postcard


This is my stitched postcard that I made for the Great Stitched Postcard Swap. Why bamboo when the theme was time? I tend to think of time in natural elements. As bubbles or bamboo where a bubble will grow and then burst, where young bamboo is so flexible and older bamboo is thick and rigid.

Serendipitously a few days ago I visited an old house on the road near the river. It was up for rent and even though I'm not looking to move, I wanted to view the place. I wish I took pictures, but for the sake of privacy, I decided against it.

The house was built in the 20s. It had a huge brick fireplace and a closed in porch. There's something very charming about those kind of details.

It sits on a very usable acre with a view in each direction. I noticed that a gate on the east side and inquired about where it went to. The owner of the house said it was not within the property. After doing a walk though of the house, we went back outside and again I was drawn to the gate.

"Look at the bamboo forest. It's amazing!" I said, for on the other side of the gate, bamboo grew to 20 or 30 feet high.

The owner then confessed it was his and that he was a bamboo farmer. He said you can get inside the forest and everything is calm and the rustle of leaves reduces stress.

That sounded so inviting. I had a hellacious kind of day, and it was so busy that I didn't have a chance to mail the bamboo card off to Lex, so I still had it in my car. I told the owner I had something to show him.

And when I was set to leave, I pulled the card out and showed it to him. Well that was a mighty big grin on his face. "You're a bamboo lover too!"

Guess so.

2 comments:

  1. Judy I love this! Thanks for sharing it. I used to live in Kyoto, the old capital of Japan, and had a large bamboo forest near my house. I always used to go there to find peace and calm. It looked particularly beautiful covered in snow

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  2. I've always wanted to grow bamboo! Maybe one day when I live somewhere warmer again. It always seems so calming & serene.

    Love your post card too!

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Thanks for sharing!