This branch, with a young apple and leaves, was the only remains of what I had hoped would be a bumper apple crop last year. I found it lying on the ground not far from my Granny Smith apple tree. The likely culprit was a rock squirrel (or more unsightly rodent) that slowly stole all of the apples from my apple trees. As I lifted this remnant off the ground, I moved quickly from disappointment to awe. I cherished the beautiful simplicity of this surviving branch and immediately took it into my studio and began to create this still life painting to honor it.