I took this photo a couple of months ago but hadn’t done anything with it beyond processing into black and white. Today, on a day that I shouldn’t be looking at work emails but find myself doing so, I opened the folder of photos that I have been mulling over and this one suddenly resonated with me.
Kirk and I went for a walk up Hollyburn Mountain some time back and, at the very tip top, on a rocky spot, stood this tree.
I liked the texture and the structure of it, but it was missing something when I first looked at the image I offloaded from the camera. Interestingly, when I stripped away the colour, what was missing seemed to appear.
The colour obscured the fundamental emotion of the image.
It feels old, tired, beaten down by the elements, but still standing as strong as it can. It has had branches snapped off, it’s been twisted into some caricature of its original form, its top has been lost, and it’s been stripped bare on one side. It has resilience, but it’s starting to look like it might not withstand another storm; its grasp on solid footing seems tenuous and it might soon crack and fall under further pressure.
Trees aren’t capable of pulling up roots and finding a new, more nourishing, more solid and supportive, place to put down new roots.
Humans can feel this way about their circumstances too, but they have an advantage over trees in this last respect.
We are born of ancient family
Living here all our days
And though we love our scenery
Wouldn’t we just love somewhere to stay?
It’s an order for eviction
And I can’t believe I’m seeing what I see
If it kills I will surround myself
With four stone walls
A little pride upon the shelf
And four stone walls around me
And they came to meet you, one and all
With big words in the village hall
Getting older, looking back
Still the fact is nothing changed at all
Never charity we seek, just honest wages
Once a week and a place called home
To whom it will concern within your office
Wouldn’t you wish more than this, a caravan
Pushed aside, forgotten land
For me and my kind
Capercaillie – Four Stone Walls
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