Sunday, March 9, 2008

Yellow Ribbon


Yellow Ribbon

The first time I saw a yellow ribbon round a tree was when I came to the US for the first time after the Iran hostage crisis (1979-1981.) I learned it served as a symbol of welcome for the hostages who were held at the embassy in Tehran. Then I learned more about it: there was a popular song called “Tie a Yellow Ribbon ‘Round the Ole Oak Tree”, written by Irwin Levine and L. Russell Brown and recorded by Tony Orlando and Dawn. The song has a nice rhythm which you can check at
http://www.geocities.com/holidaysfun/ribbon.html
(copy and paste, please)
The story is about a man who leaves prison and who requested his wife or girlfriend to indicate that she wanted him back by tying a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree in front of her home. If he could see the ribbon from the bus in which he would be traveling he would know she still wanted him.
This painting was based on the above but also on the pictures I see of troops coming back home from Iraq in the last years. The yellow ribbon is not only a sign of welcome for the one who’s returning but also a sign of loyalty of the one who waited.

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