Charles E. Burchfield, Journals, January 22, 1954

Continuously cold weather – close to zero every morning –

More work on the 1917 picture –

P.M. – asked Bertha to look at it – she liked it all except the upper left sky which seemed to her “dirty and incomplete –“ it was hard for me to see at first, so intent I was on the problem of its design or pattern only –

Too tired to work on it – I quit for the day & we went food shopping –

A dream –

Of being in a rooming house – one of the boarders wanted me to look at a painting that he was sending to the W.N.Y. show – it was a painting of pussy willows in bloom, with a cardinal in their midst – he had painted the pussy-willow pollen a light reddish buff instead of yellow – the effect was beautiful – he then showed me his material – he had brought the willows in and forced them into bloom – he had “tamed” the cardinal, and it perched on his hand – for the bird he had made a little hood, a head covering and a little smock –

Charles E. Burchfield, January 22, 1954