Historical Architecture for Southwest Arm

This poem was written by Elaine Peddle Spurrell in 2008 about a home that stood in Butter Cove during her youth.  After you read the poem be sure to check out some of the beautiful homes around Southwest Arm.

Abandoned

Home of Robert and Sarah Spurrell, Butter Cove

Wandering along the cliffs
The sharp scent of blackberries
Bring childhood memories
Flooding to my mind.
 
Tears spring to my eyes.
Where has it all gone?
Where is the path I wandered as a child?
Now overgrown with grass and brambles.
 
Nearby, a familiar house, stands tall after all these years.
Window sills rotting, foundation crumbling,
Cobwebbed windows offer a glimpse into the past.
Kitchen chairs around a waiting table, waiting for those long gone.
 

Home of Robert and Sarah Spurrell, Butter Cove

How long has it been since laughter filled these walls?
Since footsteps echoed in the halls?
In the yard, a rusting anchor, cocooned in grass.
Through the lens of the past, I see my aunt
Raking grass into hay, bandana on her head,
Children playing around her feet.
 
It was here that the lapping of the ocean,
Lulled me to sleep on warm summer nights.
The put-put of the motorboats, heading for the fishing grounds
Awakened me at dawn.
 
Only yesterday I was a child
Chasing after rainbows.
Today, I’m an old woman
Grieving for the past.