victoriangardenbench

Jeremy Green “Rust Never Sleeps” 4/30/24

This Victorian wrought iron bench has been in my consciousness ever since I became conscious. Its place was in a side yard along the periphery of a garden plot that fell into neglect, as did the bench. As a kid I used to occasionally try to sit on it, but the chalky white paint rubbed off, and the bumpy, hard iron bench itself was impossibly uncomfortable. Nobody sat on this garden bench.

Much later in life I was going through a divorce, and I retreated temporarily to my boyhood home. In an attempt to get my mind off my woes, I adopted this bench as a project for renewal. I got it moved into a garage where I took a sander to it, followed by a coat of primer, and finally a new coat of shiny white paint. It looked marvelous. That was over 30 years ago. Rust never sleeps.