I have been so busy savoring April that I almost forgot to write the actual post. We have, however, been celebrating and savoring all month on this page, and that certainly counts. As the month comes to a close, we glance back at what has been a landmark year for azaleas (Rory McElroy wasn’t the only thing to take our breath away at this year’s Masters), and look forward to what else the earth cares to offer up for our enjoyment.
In that regard, take a look at this one-woman welcoming committee to Winnsboro, South Carolina. Winnsboro has no shortage of pedigreed structures, many of them dating way back into the 1800's and even earlier - and I love exploring there.
Always, though, this girl is one of the first to greet me, sitting as she does on the north end of town. By old house standards, it one is one of Winnsboro's youngsters. Though I can't find historical data, just the style alone suggests somewhere between 1860 and the turn of the 20th century.
For whatever reason - and in whatever season - I find myself pulling over and stopping to take just one more photo. A bright spring morning found me there again - and as if the house itself wasn't enough, pink roses spilling over a stone wall sealed the deal.
If ever a month deserved savoring, this has been that month. Happy Spring, y’all.
Photo by Beth Yarbrough.
This is my brother’s home. It was built around 1898, I believe, by one of my Aiken great-aunts and her husband, a Douglas who grew up at in the county. They moved to DC for his law practice, and the house was purchased by the Ketchin family who lived there until my brother and his wife purchased it the late 1970s or early 1980s. My home, built by my grandparents, is its neighbor to the south.
I meant to mention in my earlier comment that my brother loves preserving “heritage” plants. I believe those old roses, whose name I can’t recall, are among the flora he recalls from his childhood in the neighborhood.