Sorrow in the Woods – Wyeth Walk #117

“The annual [hunt for rabbits] in these hills is becoming a source of sorrow for me… To kill does not turn my stomach; it sours my sensibilities.” – NC Wyeth

Woke up this morning with shadow on my brain, but forced myself to strap on the hiking boots and get out in the woods.  I had on my mind my own negative spiral I was trying to avoid and also the despair of an acquaintance suffering from depression when I saw this disease-growth on the tree and the “tears” streaming down from it in the form of water drips and the trees beyond.  It took most of the hike but the trees were once again nourishing and comforting; I left the woods so much lighter, and ended up having a super nice family day, disconnected from the online world.

This NC Wyeth quote certainly doesn’t match the specific intent behind this picture as I was taking it, but I found it astounding that today, on the day I had taken the picture of the tree crying, I decided to continue reading his letters after a several month hiatus, and the passage where I had left off was about sorrow in the woods.

June 28, Chester County PA, temp 75ish F in the morning