The Candy Store

When we were young, my cute friend often invited me to her parents’ cabin in Iron Springs. A charming area in Prescott, AZ that seemed to turn back the clock… think Mayberry. But to a kid, it was simply a fun place to explore and …just be a kid! I remember the car ride on my first visit … my friend giving me the lowdown on what fun we were about to have… “and then there is the candy store”, she told me, “where you can get any kind of candy you want!”

With piggy bank change in our pockets, we would venture out for the day. Our outings included: rock climbing, collecting nature‘s treasures for craft projects, swinging on the playset and of course, visiting the local Iron Springs Store, which the young visitors appropriately named, “The Candy Store”. Jolly Ranchers and Pixy Stix were among the favorites. After carefully selecting the sweet treats for the day, out the screen door we would fly to the old train caboose located close by. This was our hideout, a place to giggle and eat tons of candy without the grown-ups around. Those were sweet & carefree days!

As I grew older, the candy store became the art store and just like that nostalgic place in the pines, this store has me gathering sweet treats, like yummy paint colors, velvety paintbrushes & beautiful blank canvases.  I often think of those days in Iron Springs with my cute friend and the joy that down-to-earth place brought to our young lives… the wildly free feeling of creating our day as we traveled along the dirt path daydreaming and simply just being… the same feeling that comes over the grown-up me when visiting the art supply store and then taking that first brushstroke on a fresh canvas….in my studio, my hideaway … just being & painting, sometimes until dawn.

♥️, Jana

Watercolor by: Ann McEachron