"I close my eyes
Only for a moment, and the moment's gone
All my dreams
Pass before my eyes, a curiosity"
~Dust in the Wind, Kansas
In the summer of 2021 I moved to Winfield Kansas, to an apartment on the outskirts of town. Behind the minuscule back "yard" of this apartment there was a field, and across the field was a stately cottonwood tree towering over the trees that surrounded it. I fell in love. I can't tell you why, but I thought this tree was beautiful. Worthy of photographing. Not just once, but over and over and over.
Through Tornado Alley's storms and rain and wind, while the field was full of golden wheat, with fires blazing behind it - lighting up the night, and even when the aurora borealis crept far enough south to be visible even in Kansas. For 3 years I photographed this tree what has to be well over 100 times (even if far fewer of those photos actually have been shared). I always told myself I'd keep photographing this tree until it fell … or until I finally moved away.
Well, thankfully, the thing that stopped me was the latter, and not the former. As of summer 2024 I am no longer living in Winfield Kansas. I no longer get to see my Tree-Across-the-Field every day. I can't say I'm not sad about it. That tree has become a core part of my photography, and my photography is a core part of myself. I'm going to miss it.
Anyway, enough rambling. A few days before the move, we were inundated with severe weather. All of the meteorological ingredients were present for a tornado outbreak, and a PDS (particularly dangerous situation) Tornado Watch was issued for Winfield (and much of the surrounding area). When the weather picks up I often end up looking out across the field to see if I can make out anything interesting, and on that day I was rewarded with a sight I'd never seen in my time living there. Days earlier the field betwixt me and my tree had been plowed, so when the pre-storm winds started to pick up, they carried the loose Kansas dirt with them in every direction. Still photos fail to do it justice, but still photos are all I have. Still photos are what I love. And here's what will (almost certainly) be my last photo of that tree across the field. Mine only for a moment, and the moment's gone.
More Tree-Across-the-Field: https://art.katzeye.me/Projects/The-Tree-Across-the-Field