This is my favourite landscape; it's what I consider MY landscape. These are the peaceful, unassuming horizons burned into my mind and imagination from years of contemplating them looking out car windows or out on a country gravel road. I didn't always appreciate them, but have come to love them - profoundly.

(Photo credit goes to a dear friend who let me post)

The grain elevators that speckled my childhood horizons are being torn down across the province, and frankly I'm horrified. I don't propose we keep them for any practical purpose - they are no longer safe or effective for their original purpose - but they are iconic of the life our forefathers built here. They are precious, beautiful symbols of the pioneers who fought for a beautiful life and built a new, humble, kind-hearted, peaceful civilization. And we should want them to be preserved for THAT reason.

Atlantic Canada is, apparently, also tearing down all of the lighthouses because they don't serve a purpose anymore. It's so sad. This is our prairie equivalent and we don't even really blink when they come down in droves. I think we should be preserving as many as we safely can, even at some cost.

I know all of the practical arguments, but I'm pretty tired of everything being use and efficiency driven increasingly more. It's exhausting and disheartening.

Does everything have to be about the all-holy Bottom Line?

The most important things are often the apparently "useless" things.

You know, like beauty and love and friendship and laughter and colour and art and music and...

Photos like this are one way to immortalize these icons that are fast diminishing. I wish I had the heart, energy, and headspace just now to petition that we keep at least a few of the ones that remain.

Perhaps I lack some sense and pragmatism in this.. It's likely in fact.

And? I think someone has to! It's not all about dry pragmatism all the time, friends. Fight for beauty & symbols & the "useless" essentials. Trust me on this.

xx,
Kay

P.S. Hey! Listen to my Open Mic entry for this week! :).

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