Many years ago I visited a very good friend in Bozeman, Montana. He was an older man, living with his wife in his home town, but he had spent most of his earlier adult life living in Amsterdam, and becoming one of the most well known sculptors of our time.  When Floyd picked me up from airport, I really did not know what to expect, he was a severely cranky and temperamental artist, and add to that, he had just quit smoking.  I was very much surprised when I walked into his house for the first time.  It was a modern style farm house…huge, incredible studio in the back. The one element that did not seem to fit, was the old fashioned, cast iron wood burning stove in the middle of the living room.

Even though it was April, the town had experienced and ice storm the night before, so it was very cold, especially to me coming from the springtime temperatures in Phoenix, Arizona.  When we walked in, Floyd’s wife had loaded up the stove, and the warmth was nothing like I had experienced before.  In Phoenix, there are not many homes that are built with fireplaces, and I could not believe how, not only was it really warm, but the cozy feel just put me right at home.  The heat that was provided was an all around kind of heat, nothing like the forced air heat that can zap any humidity out of the room, causing it sometimes to be hard to breath.

The fire, just felt better.  People have been heating their houses for centuries, with these wood burning stoves and fireplaces.  They not only are an effective way to heat your home, but they add an ambiance that is just not there without it.  Having family and friends over for the holidays, well, now that I have experienced the warmth of the stove, having everyone sitting around the fireplace and chatting, just signifies that the season is here and filled with cheer.  Stories are told and memories are made.  Once I was in his environment, and we were talking about art in front of the fire, Floyd turned out to be not so cranky after all.