Arts & Crafts--Highwaymen Robert Butler "Golden Grove":

Golden Grove Citrus, like many foreigners who came to these shores, has flourished under diligent stewardship. Florida — and Polk County, in particular — came to be called the "Citrus Capital of the World." A long and illustrious pedigree was developed from the original citrus brought to the New World in the hold of Spanish ships. Today, many countries have a thriving population of New World citrus creations. It seems that the fabled gold once sought by explorers is finally discovered. The "Land of Flowers" is not a place of broken dreams after all. I grew up in a small town in southern Florida, a state forever splendid And enchanting in my mind’s eye. A place where smiling blue skies, dressed up with fluffy white clouds And lavished the land with diamonds that fell from the sky. A place where the earth smiled back with lush-green decadence and accents of orange and yellow gold. — Poem by the artist. © Robert Butler 1999