38 - MOM’S CHILDHOOD HOME

MOM’S CHILDHOOD HOME

12 ½ x 21 ½ inches

(The Weitzenkamp home, near Uehling, Nebraska)

This large house, built in 1893 near Uehling, was Mother’s childhood home—the Weitzenkamp home. Mother, her three sisters, and five brothers lived here until Mother’s brother bought the home for his own family in 1942. It was the setting for many memorable family reunions filled with laughter and excitement as generations of Weitzenkamps gathered within.

It was eerie that while I was working on this painting, Mother phoned to tell me of tragic news—an electrical fire had just destroyed the house. Sadly, now only memories remain.

I left the wash on the clothesline to symbolize a sense of cleansing. Purified aromas of freshly washed clothes flap in the brisk winter wind, leaving the past behind.