Boyhood Memories

Berwyn, PA

My earliest memories are of Berwyn, PA. This train station lies beneath what used to be a narrow bridge for cars that has since been replaced with a walking bridge. My older brothers used to catch the train here to go to Holy Child School.

The old bridge led to Cassatt Avenue which dead-ended into the Bair estate on Conestoga Road.I remember the homestead on Mountview Road as a place with a humongous yard (front and back) on a long, long beautiful road. As I visited on a rainy day, the only thing I could reaffirm is the beauty...it's much smaller, but the house and neighborhood are more beautiful than I remembered.

Dad's original fence has been replaced, but obviously subsequent owners love the idea.The old screened porched is now enclosed in glass, but Dad's brick patio remains. Way to go, Dad!Oldest brother Brennan's old climbing tree in the back yard! There used to be two.All the big windows and curved glass are part of an addition. Despite increasing the size, it all looked so much smaller than my 3-7 year old mind's memories. Lovely nonetheless.Mountview Road is simply beautiful in the fall.
This picture doesn't do it justice.The bridge on Contention Lane. I remember Dad always yelling out the car window, "Yo-oh" as we drove through.The old spring house just through the tunnel.
We used to buy fresh corn on the cob right here.Devon Farm
A Special Place at the corner of Forge and Valley Roads
No words can explain the significance of this place for our family, especially all the brothers. We miss it and mourn it passing from our family to someone else's hands. This was a bitter sweet journey.The place we used to park in back. Grandmother Carol always planted tulips on either side of this driveway. I can still see her gardening.Farewell, Devon Farm.

Wyeth Country 2008

Andrew Wyeth, famed American realist painter lives in Chadds Ford, PA. After looking at the paintings of his home (the restored Brinton's Mill) for years, five minutes on Google Earth helped me find the property. I drove there and photographed it all from a respectful distance.

Kuerner's Farm

One of Wyeth's favorite subjects was sites in, on, and around the farm of his friends, the Kuerners. After Karl and Anna Kuerner's death, his children arranged to give the property to the Brandywine Conservancy. It is now both a working farm and a satellite museum of the Brandywine River Museum. I arrived at BRM as the bus was ready to leave for the farm, but was the only one. So, dream of dreams, I managed to tour the property with no one else present but the bus driver, tour guide, Wyeth's granddaughter-in-law, and the animals.

What a special day!

Pendle Hill, Pennsylavania 2008

In mid-October, I traveled to a small community outside Philadelphia called Pendle Hill. It is a Quaker center for spiritual growth, study, and service. With 47 others (including 4 Guilford College students), I attended a workshop on "Clerking the Meeting," run by distinguished Quaker, Arthur Larrabee. In addition to receiving a plethora of useful instruction on Clerking, I managed to enjoy the spendid countryside.