tiny kelsie

At the end of Harbor Road, in our little village of Southport, there’s a small open lawn area. Some war between the colonists & natives was fought across the road in front of a private property, and there’s a placard there so you won’t forget. Next to the open lawn area, there’s a little sliver of beach and a little dock for fishing. Sometimes people walk their dogs over there, take them off the leash. It’s a beautiful little hidden gem if you’re somewhere where you can easily walk to it, as there isn’t any public parking.

If you’re familiar with Southport, you surely know of Southport Harbor. Further up the road, a little less known, is Ye Yacht Yard. Unlike Southport Harbor, there’s no yachts parked there–just kayaks and paddleboards. It does have a ramp to get your boat into the water.

This is a favorite place of mine when I’m going for long walks or runs, and I’ve many photos here over the years as I stop and admire its beauty.

During an earlier visit to this space, when I had more recently moved to Connecticut, I was walking up to the area, and some kids with fishing rods sticking out of their backpacks rode up on shiny bicycles of red, blue, and black to the dock. They knew other kids on the opposite side of the Harbor’s waters, and were shouting toward them, but couldn’t quite communicate. Then one said, “We’ll come to you!” and hopped back on their bikes to pedal the long way–the land way–toward their friends.

This is one of my earliest memories in which I had that warm feeling emanating from my sternum and I thought, “How amazing is it that these kids get to grow up like this?”

The image above, was more recent–a few years ago. These kids were hanging out on the dock, one walked off, and the others that were left behind were stunned when they realized he had snuck onto his family boat and was speeding off. They were all shouting at him with disbelief. Unbeknownst to them, I, not too far away, was in a disbelief of my own.

Pequot Library is hosting a juried art show this year. It’s the 23rd, but their first in-person version of it since 2019. In 2019, I submitted a painting inspired by a photo I took here at this space, not pictured. The painting was denied entry. I decided this year I wanted to try my hand at the painting again, but with the skills and art style I’ve acquired over the years.

This is my preliminary sketch: