On the Prairie you can see the Wind
By Michael Van Der Tol
10 March 2008
I live in the City of Ottawa now but I still consider myself a Prairie Person. I've never been truly comfortable surrounded by mountains or by large inner city buildings – I find it confining. There is something exhilarating about standing in the middle of a brilliant yellow canola field, the sight of hay as it comes off the field, and the big sky that spreads across the unending land. Growing up in Western Canada seemed simple, gentle, and uncomplicated. I don't think I really appreciated the ease of life back then, but what kid does. It takes years of living away for you to truly appreciate what you left behind.
As a kid summers seemed to last forever. The days we long and full of activity. The sun set at 10:00pm in late June and was back peeking over the horizon at 4:30am. I guess that is why I still get so darn depressed as winter solstice approaches.
On the prairie you can see the wind. I was always fascinated watching the wind navigate its way across a field of wheat; the waves so clearly evident as the wind rolls its way atop vast fields wheat on a blistering hot August afternoon.
One of my most vivid memories involves traveling down gravel roads in a half ton truck; windows wide open to create a breeze and country music blaring on the radio. You could drive forever without turning a corner. I don't remember going any where specific, but I do remember that innocent care-free feeling of not really needing to be anywhere but where I was at that moment.
Those images are from a "lifetime ago" and as I grow older they become more distant and faded. But the feeling they evoke within is still timeless; that will never fade but grows stronger and more sentimental as the years pass.
Photographers Note: All of the images in this essay were photographed in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, Canada in the summer 2006 and 2007.
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