Poetry, paintings offer glimpse into woman's life
By LISA CARNLEY Staff Writer

PHOTOS BY LISA CARNLEY Laura Ellis has been writing poetry for many years and keeps her collection close at hand along with her constant companion, Jock.

Three empty rooms
No one shares
Empty table
Eight empty chairs.
One living room
One large TV
No one watches,
Entertains me.
One big tree
That grows quite tall
No swing marks
Left at all.
My lawn is green
Where it once died
Where my children
Played and cried.
This house is old,
But still alive
Still five footprints
In my cement drive.
Just one used chair
That's made for me
Where I relive
Fond memories.

The preceding poem is one of several thousand written by Laura Ellis, an 85-year-old Lampasas resident. Dozens of albums are stuffed with pages she has written about everyday things she has experienced and feels strongly about: a rundown house, an empty room, nature, a windmill, emotions and various animals.

Mrs. Ellis has suffered with arthritis since age 8 and although it has left her severely impaired, her thoughts continue to swirl with words she just must put on paper.

A painting of an old homestead painted on board adorns Mrs. Ellis' wall.

Ideas for her poems come from more than eight decades of living. Some are based on true events, while others, she said, "come to her like a thief in the night."

"Sometimes I just feel them, or people tell me stories. Other times I just sit in my chair, and the words just come. I also get ideas from television. Once I saw a homeless man on TV, and I wrote a poem about that. I get them down on paper, and later I put the finishing touches on them."

Mrs. Ellis also paints in oils and has done so since she was a child. Though her hands now have trouble holding a paintbrush, her home abounds with paintings that remind her of things she loves: an old homestead in San Saba, African animals and Indian relics.

Many residents can spot Mrs. Ellis as she tools through the neighborhood on her electric scooter with her trusty sidekick, Jock, firmly entrenched in her lap. The eight-pound chihuahua came to belong to Mrs. Ellis after a scooter ride one afternoon.

Wildlife and the outdoors are favorite subjects of the artist's work.

"A man was chasing a little dog down the street, and he said he didn't know what he was going to do because the dog kept getting out of the house.

"I said I'd take him."

Jock hopped into her lap and has been there the last four years, her constant companion.

Mrs. Ellis, the mother of five children (one is deceased), said though it is hard to be alone, she finds solace in writing poetry and looking at the artwork she has created over the years.

"I started doing art when I was 10. I started out with Crayolas," she said. Most of her work is painted on boards.

"I hated to spend good money on expensive canvas and then mess it up. With boards, I don't care if I mess them up."

Mrs. Ellis also for nearly 20 years hand-painted Christmas cards. "I did 100 of them every year, and I would put my poems on them for friends."

The grandmother of nine, greatgrandmother of four and greatgreat grandmother of two lived early on at the Colorado River in San Saba. Her family raised fruits and vegetables: tomatoes, melons, black-eyed peas and okra. They pumped water from the river for irrigation.

In 1936, the area was devastated by flooding, and the family's fields were ruined. In 1938, they sold the land and moved to another farm in San Saba.

"We didn't have any running water there. We had to walk about a half-mile to the creek to get water for washing, and we got our water for drinking from a neighbor's house," she said. "We moved into that house in the 1930s, and it was old then. It was cold in the winters. We nearly froze to death that first winter."

Mrs. Ellis said the land was purchased for $2,500 in 1938, and sold in 2004 for $120,000. "Isn't that amazing? Things have just gotten so expensive," she said.

A poem she wrote of her childhood memories in San Saba follows.

The country path I walked one time.

My feet can no longer tread.

I will walk that path again in my mind,

when I'm dreaming in my bed.

When I rest at the close of the day,

I will walk that path again. back along the same old way How I love to bring to mind Every tree, flower and brook. Life has been both sad and kind, like a long story book. Everything must come to a close, a day or a pretty song. Petals fall from a wilting rose,

so we, too, must say so long.

Mrs. Ellis moved to Lampasas in 1941 to be near her husband's family. She worked for Producer's Produce for more than 30 years, retiring in 1972.

Poetry has been her companion for many years. She uses the computer to put her words on paper. They may come at 2 a.m. or when she's shopping. But still they come.

As for painting, Mrs. Ellis said she sometimes misses it. "I could still paint if I took the notion, but I don't have the desire any more."

She does, though, continue with her poetry. Many of her works are published online, and she belongs to a poets' workshop where other poets rate their counterparts.

Much of her poetry has earned high rankings. "My spelling may not be so good, but my thoughts are what's important."

One of her favorite poems follows, which summarizes life, she said.

Everything Gives Way to Something

Shadows give way to darkness
Rivers give way to the sea
Roses give way to the winter
Nectar gives way to the bees
Snow gives way to the sunshine
Stars give way to the dawn
Everything gives way to something

As life goes on and on
Summer gives way to autumn
Flowers give way to its breath
Autumn gives way to winter
Life gives way to death.