What is it about gates that they seem to create a passageway in to magical, otherwise uncharted worlds? Is it the "breaking the rules," "No Trespassing" thrill or the heart-pounding discovery of something previously unknown and secret? I, myself, am not a rule breaker... pretty rigid in that way. I guess the fear of getting caught weighs too heavily on my conscience. But when I think of neighborly English countryside gates and glorious rose bestrewn or boxwood hedged private gardens, I am captivated.
Even a good rugged American cattle guard stirs the imagination. What's inside? Or what beauty and mystery does each hinge swing wide to embrace. The possibilities are endless. There is security and safety in being lovingly enclosed, and wonder and excitement in the exploration and adventure of what lies within and without.... of whatever's on the other side. There is romance in a gate where lovers tryst or one designated specifically as a place for them to kiss.
Gates can be unyielding and exclusive, not a glimpse or hint of what sterile thing may be guarded behind the walls, but these are not the kind of gates I like. I like the ones that open in to love and indefinable riches... and freely open out to daydreaming's limitless possibilities.
Dew (Minster Lovell) by Rupert Brun. This image reminds me of the interior of the gated community in the film "Notting Hill."
As JRR Tolkien says,
"It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
I am linking to Jenny Matlock's Alphabe-Thursday. This week is brings you these great G posts.
