A Purple Castle that Inspired this Writer.

Finally, I have managed to upload some of the images of the Purple Castle that has inspired my imagination for years now. Unfortunately, the exterior of the house is neglected. So use your imagination and imagine this unusual house in a beautiful green setting, with colorful flowers all around it, instead of the dead grass and weeds that actually do surround it. And think of a man and wife, who had a dream of building a unique house, 14 years ago, and actually did it. All the work, from beginning to the present, was done by the two of them. They designed it, and built it together from the ground up, which is quite an accomplishment, if you think about it. Above, you see the backside of the house. When I shot this photo, I was afraid to step back anymore than I already had, because just a few feet behind me is a steep ravine/hill. This is the side that you see in the winter, when the trees on the huge hill the house sits on, are leafless. And as you're traveling on the highway below the hill, you get this glimpse of the Purple Castle, looking down on all travellers. (Well, okay, the purple house that sort of resembles a castle.) And that's Sandra standing to the side. I didn't realize she was in the picture until I uploaded it. Duh!

This is the front side of the house with its purple fence, as it faces a two-lane blacktop road. It is where Eileen and I were parked, when I ventured out to take pictures of the house, and Sandra came out and gave me permission to take as many shots as I wanted.

As you can see, the porch is stacked up with furniture and other stuff which isn't exactly flattering looking, but you can nevertheless see the unusual architecture of the house.

This is a giant, wall-sized painting, inside the house, of a magnificent buck, done by Sandra, who is an artist. Isn't it beautiful? She said the painting was a labor of love, even though it took some time to finish it. Click on the picture to enlarge it and see it in all its glory!

As a writer, I enjoy doing exercises that are called prompts. The Purple Castle became my prompt and inspired a story. A fantasy fiction type story. It is slowly evolving, and it's about an unhappy, lonely woman who has the reoccurring dreams of a beautiful, Purple Castle. She begins to love the dream so much, that she doesn't want to wake up again! Well, that is all I will give away about the plot of this story, but Eileen is already talking about making it into a movie, with the theme music in the background to be "Deep Purple." LOL. But I'm just hoping to get a short story out of it, even if just for my own satisfaction.

I have several more pictures of both the exterior and the interior, but I think the few that I have chosen to upload, were good choices. As always, click on the pictures to get a larger, full view of them.

Well, I have made this post long enough for now. I hope you enjoyed seeing this writers inspiration from a lovely Purple Castle!

Thank you for reading. Have a wonderful week, everyone!

His Inspiring Motto--A Story for Father's Day

I was eleven when we fled our Soviet occupied country Hungary, in 1947, landing in a refugee camp in Austria. Our only worldly possessions were the clothes on our backs. We had lost everything because of World War II, but we were alive, and for that we were grateful to God.

The refugee camp housed hundreds of destitute refugees. Although dismal and cramped, the camp provided a roof over our heads, donated clothes to wear, and soup and bread to fill our hungry stomachs. So what did it matter that we didn’t have penny to our names?

But it mattered a great deal to Apa (Hungarian for Dad.) He hated living off the charity of others; hated not being able to provide for his family, as he always did in the past.

Just beyond our dismal camp home was a beautiful natural world of mountains, a crystal clear river, and farms with grazing animals. The river was the Drau River, and Apa and I discovered it on a summer day while taking one of our rambles through the countryside.

“You can enjoy the water, while I get busy with something else,” he said,.

So I splashed around in the shallow, clear water, while Apa walked up and down the bank. I noticed he was cutting some branches from the river willows growing all along the bank. Soon, he had a large armful of them, so we headed back to camp.

“What are you going to do with them?” I asked him curiously.

“I will make some baskets,” Apa replied.

“And what will you do with the baskets?” I continued, suddenly remembering that his hobby in the past used to be weaving.

“I will try and sell them to the Austrians.”

Soon, Apa found some old boards and bricks, and set up a worktable in front of our barrack. Then, after peeling the willow branches, he began weaving his first basket. A large crowd gathered to watch him. Some boys volunteered to get more willow branches for him.

“Thank you. And when I sell my baskets, I’ll pay you for your help.”

Within a short time, there were six beautiful baskets ready for market. Apa hung them on a long stick, flung them over his shoulder, and off he went to town, looking like a hobo peddler. He returned a few hours later minus the baskets. He had sold all of them!

Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out the book I had been longing for, while we had walked around in town.

“Oh, thank you, Apa,” I shrieked, giving him a hug. “I can’t believe you were able to buy me a new book.”

“You are welcome, Sweetheart. Never forget–where there is a will, there is always a way,” he said. Then he went off to pay the boys who had helped him.

Apa continued with his new venture all summer, and even gave free lessons in weaving to anyone interested. After he sold the next batch, he bought himself a fishing pole, too, and a large frying pan, and building a fire outside the barrack, soon cooked up a large batch of fish he caught in the river, and shared it with our neighbors. It was most unusual to have the aroma of that frying fish wafting through the camp, where barracks were lined up like soldiers, and helpless people lived their lives in them, hoping and praying for something better.

My dear Apa’s example was an inspiration to many at that refugee camp. His motto became my motto in life, and it has always served me well.

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"Any man can be a Father but it takes someone special to be a dad."
-- Anne Geddes

This story is from the book, “The Best Dad in the World” published by Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc. Copyright © April 2008.

A longer version of this story was previously published in Chicken Soup for the Father and Daughter's Soul. Apa was my dear grandfather, who raised me.

Thank you for reading. Have a wonderful weekend!

The Greens of Spring

The beautiful palette of spring greens in early May is a feast for the eyes. Artists have painted these subtle, tender greens over the ages, poets have written poems about it, while I can only snap a few pictures of it, and gaze at it with deep appreciation, and much thankfulness. Spring is finally here in all her splendor!

This is a picture of some of the new lettuce in my little garden. Isn't it a pretty green? I have already enjoyed it as a salad with grape tomatoes, chopped red onions, and a vinaigrette dressing. Delicious! And the resident deer haven't found it yet!

The green of the iris leaves is darker, with some gray tones, adding to the green palette of the yard and field, nicely.

Speaking of deer, they have been enjoying the new, tender green grass in the field. That is a hickory tree, to their left, with it's yellowish-green leaves that are almost full size already.

Here, the greens of the trees to the northern edge of the field, display their tender new greens of early May, beautifully.

On top of the field to the east, where the woods begin, the trees are subtle green colors, tender greens, faint rose tints, chartreuse greens, all forming a canopy of colors that lift my mood with their beauty.

I read that the color green symbolizes life, nature, fertility , well being , and that grass green is the most restful color. Green also symbolizes balance, growth and harmony. And, of course, money! But that's another story.

I hope you can get out there and enjoy the tender greens of early May. By mid-May, they will turn to the darker, more robust green, offering us shade from the hot sun.

Thank you for reading. Have a wonderful weekend!