It reminds me of the influence of The System on four generations of young children-this forced hybrid fence and tree monstrosity.
The metal representing all of the ugliness and obscene harshness filtered throughout their psyches. The tree representing the children.. or rather , what remains of childhood.
The wire seems to weave in and out of the woody flesh but it’s the tree that ended up doing the hard work of growing around it and despite it.
With unforgiving punctures and what look like surreal organic bandages, the effects of the fence appear all over in ghastly and glamorous exaggerations.
If the mind’s eye is utilized “just so” one can even spot an ironic side view of what appears to be a demon, forever imprinted and worked into the surface.
I was repulsed and hypnotized by it at the same time.
My heart also ached in the strangest way when I looked at the leaves.
As if their home wasn’t a mauled and mutilated chunk; stuck forever with a cruel and cold partner it never wanted..
As if they still sprung from the once long and healthy limbs that used to grow towards the sky..
From arms no longer there.. since workers yanked and sawed the poor things away from the equally violent intentions of the fence.
The beauty of those gorgeous and perfectly formed leaves.
No matter how ugly and violent and cruel of a life their mother had to endure..
No matter how the scenery changed around them..
My heart ached over the damages done to our children, to us, over several decades by a system. This fence with barbed wire running along the top- illustrating all too perfectly the undiscussed and unchallenged condition of our existence.
It also ached with a strange sort of joyful assurance.. about a future that most of us may never live long enough to see.
It’s a feeling of joy which came from this reminder of the magical resilience of Nature.
It’s about seeds carried into the future and a beautiful regeneration which won’t require inadequate human hands nor be left permanently damaged by the insane human minds of a System..which had no business being set up where it was set up in the first place.
photos © Ramsy 2019
Ramsy's Joint 