Charles Burchfield, Journals, May 4, 1942

To Zoar Valley - (after a long hesitation - the season is so far ahead of last year, that I was not yet mentally ready for the "Lavender & Old Lace" subject.)

     I was chagrined, on arriving at the old house, to discover that someone had moved in, and that I would not have the place to my-self. However, in spite of the interest and curiosity they showed, in my picture, with frequent comings & goings, they were, in spite of their all too evident poverty and shiftlessness, fundamentally well-bred -- that is, they sensed that they should not watch too long, or talk (which is something people of greater apparent culture and opportunity, do not know) Everything about them and their belongings suggested extreme poverty, due to indifference and wastefulness. The 3 children were thinly clad, and altho the morning was raw and cold, they were barefoot. (Their feet were raw & red) -- still one young woman apparently the mother, had on a fur jacket, and smoked cigarettes. An older lady, probably the grandmother, was thin & wan and emaciated, obviously defeated by her circumstances. Squalor, worse because it was unnecessary is the only word that can describe their state. In accordance with this, the three dogs they had were thin, and mangy.

     Cruelty seems to go hand in hand with poverty often -- [it] was so in this case, at any rate -- the mother following the children at their play with a long switch, and the children in turn tortured the dogs --

     There always seemed to be someone going in or out of the place -- and they did not lack for cars -- two nice looking cars stood in the drive-way; and another of older vintage stood in the farm yard -- In addition two or three trucks seemed to belong there.

     All this was in violent contrast to the theme of my picture, and I realized that all I could gather here was realistic data, and that the real creative work would have to come later in the studio

 The day, however, was ideal working -- cold, windy, exhilarating -- the sky over-cast with scudding clouds. I should have been on the spot earlier, for shortly after noon the clouds began to break, and by mid afternoon, the sky was almost cleared, destroying the effect I wanted.

     At 4:00, I quit work, and drove westward to the point where several years ago, the creek washed away the road, (necessitating a new road further back, over the hill) - Parts of the old road are still here, altho the creek is steadily eating its way toward the new one. It is a pleasant spot, with wide expansive views in all directions. I ate my lunch facing up-creek, where the stream made a bend -- the sunlight on the raw yellow green poplars and deep pines, and the rapids, made a very romantic scene.

     Evening  tired & in a daze -- My face was sun and wind burnt.

Charles E. Burchfield, May 4, 1942