March Moments

The month of March has passed quickly, bringing its expectations and its surprises.  I'd like to share a few photos of some of the moments of this month before we begin new days coming up shortly in April...

The following pictures are of a little stud colt that was born on the ranch in the early morning hours on March 25.  I took these photos in the late afternoon when he was all cleaned off and found balance on all four legs. The foal appears to be a lineback dun in color and already is exhibiting signs of being a classy fellow.  Even though he is was barely a day old when these photos were taken,  he is ready to take the world on (as long as his mommy is close by).

Scenery along Highway 26 in Eastern Oregon can be beautiful.  You never know what will present itself for a camera opportunity.  The first photo was taken in the early morning hours as the sun was cresting its rays over the hillsides on a recent trip to Bend.  The golden hue was a delight to behold that dramatized the average display of color.  The second picture is a typical scene that you see in Grant County of the Blue Mountain Range.  This shot shows the mountains in veiled clouds that appeared with the morning rain as a backdrop to cattle grazing in fields next to the highway.

And here are a few fun animal photos to share with you.  The first was taken at a parking lot in the local town of John Day.  I spotted this wonderful St. Bernard dog who was sitting quite calmly in the driver's seat of his owners truck.  He looked quite content and with his size, filled up the whole seat and window space.  He looked at me to say... " Well, haven't you seen a dog drive before??"

And last, but not least is the below photo of "King Charlie" - or at least he thinks he is king as he surveys his surroundings from a high point on the post.  Charlie is our dog-cat who can easily fit in with the dogs as one of the boys, yet also be aloof on a post in typical cat independence.

As the moments of March have quickly passed by, it also gives reflection on this Lenten season.  Yesterday, being Palm Sunday, begins Holy Week in the Christian tradition and climaxes in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  I wrote a post on March 24, 2013 entitled 'The Omni of God'.  It shares a truth about the power of the Cross as it stretches from this present age and reaches into the abyss of space and time when creation began in the Omni of God.
I encourage you to read this post at http://www.turn-uppatch.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-omni-of-god.html

My next post at The Turn-Up Patch will be on Monday, April 13.  The celebration of Easter will be over with but the Resurrection remembrance of so great a Love lives forever in our hearts.  I wish you all a  BLESSED AND HAPPY EASTER  in the experience of new life!

Ireland - Enya, Love & Time

Today's post takes us back to Ireland and highlighting a favorite artist of mine, Enya.  Many of you know her music and voice but may not be aware of some of her background.  Enya was born in the northwest of Ireland in Gweedore, County of Donegal in 1961.  The fourth child with eight siblings, she was raised in a musical family.  Enya was part of the family band, Clannad, before she branched out on her own.

Developing a style of music that can be described as ethereal, she was influenced by Irish, church and classical music.  Her albums are also performed in ten different languages.  Despite her international fame, she still finds time to sing in her mother's choir every Christmas at Midnight Mass at St. Mary's Church in Gweedore.  This is rather a condensed version of Enya - you can find out much more about her life and her success as a solo artist in research on the internet, today's information highway.
 

My focus is primarily on one of her poignant songs entitled "Only Time".  You can watch a beautiful time-lapse video by Robert Breton, which is presented by 'Eugena & Robert' at the below link featuring this particular song.    
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqtFqz0VEqs

The lyrics are simple and speak of love and time.  Part of it says....

Who can say if your love grows

As your heart chose

Only time

And who can say where the road goes

Where the day flows, only time

Who knows?  Only time  

A tree tunnel near Cahir, Ireland

I took the above photo on my memorable trip to Ireland.  I chose this particular picture to illustrate the concept as to 'who can say where the road goes'.  Time tells the story regarding the path of love - the cause and effect of its strengths and weaknesses and how it plays in the picture of our lives about what endures and what disappears.  People come and go in our lives; some walk around the edges of our heart and some walk inside, leaving an indelible footprint.  The footprints in our heart can be many or they can be few belonging to those who become part of us.  Only time reveals the depth of love in that footprint as it sinks ever deeper into our heart or if it leaves a shallow imprint where love did not grow.

See you next time  at the Turn-Up Patch on Monday, March 30....

Sands of Time and Doris

Old age in all its blessings and curses is catching up with a loved one in my life - Doris, my mother-in-law, who has become more like my mother in affection.  I wrote about Doris in a prior post entitled "Rosie the Riveter and Doris', link is listed below.  She just turned 93 years of age a few days ago and we celebrated her with balloons and birthday cake with fellow residents and caregivers who have become her family at the care facility where she lives. 

I write this today to honor her while she is still with us and would like to share a few photographs that Doris took 'back in the day'.  Some of these pictures are at least seventy years old that were found in a cedar chest in a house that was her home and sanctuary.  She was quite a photographer and over 600 negatives were stored away in this treasure box of memories.  These photos were taken during the time of 35mm cameras; a Brownie camera specifically that she used.  It was a simple camera with no elaborate accessories but she produced some outstanding shots because of her ability to frame a scene for a photograph.  The negatives were transferred into digital prints to be shared with family.    

The following pictures are just a few of the many that she took of her beloved Petrolia, a small ranching hamlet in Northern California.  The country where Petrolia is located is rugged and pristine. It is part of what is known as the 'Lost Coast' in Humboldt County.  This was the country that Doris was raised in and spent a good thirty years of her life before making a change. (Click on photos to enlarge)   

Petrolia suited Doris for she was a country gal who liked to ride a horse, hunt deer and herd sheep.  She did an occasional stint working at the local country store but her love was the outdoors.  As a single mom, she raised two sons during their early years in this unspoiled country. 

The photos below were taken of Doris as a young woman who enjoyed all that country life could offer.  Skilled with a rifle - a deer, coyote, fox or cougar did not have a chance if they were in her line of fire.  Despite her outdoor preference, Doris was still a lady.  If you look closely enough in the below photo, you can see the polish on her fingernails as she holds her fresh critter kill, which I gather had a menacing side.  Doris would shoot for meat or if wildlife were a threat to the immediate surroundings.  She did not kill for sport.  The other picture is of a young Doris with her horse.  Horses were her passion and she loved to ride the surrounding hills, which could be a challenge in itself.   

Doris eventually remarried and left the area, living in Canada and Alaska and raised a third son.  She returned to Petrolia in retirement years and pursued her enjoyment of horses. When she found it physically difficult to ride as she grew older, she'd keep a pet horse in her back yard to hand-feed and groom to her liking. After her husband passed away, the time came when Doris could no longer live by herself in her Petrolia home.  Decisions were made and she relocated to Oregon to be close to family who could see to her needs and oversee her care. 

It is usually tough for an elderly to leave their familiar place to live elsewhere.  Doris was no exception but in her resilience, knew this was something that had to be done, whether she liked it or not, to ensure her health care.  She has been with us for ten years now at an Assisted Living facility a short distance away.  Seeing Doris on a regular basis, we have come to know the staff and caregivers who have been wonderful with her throughout the days, weeks, months and years.  We have all witnessed her decline from walking to wheelchair confinement and the progression of dementia.  Throughout it all, she still manages to let people know 'who is in charge' with that last little piece of independence that she can still muster - through her tongue!  In other words, she'll still have the last say if she can.

Happy 93 years of age, Doris.  You have survived good and bad times, happiness and heartache, poverty and security.   You have been a scrapper - ready to take on injustice, particularly in a day that didn't have women's rights as they do today.  You have been a woman of strong will and determination.  You have been known to speak your mind in saying exactly what you think or feel that was born out of the independence gained from survival.  And yes, you still like to have your nails freshly painted and polished.

We have watched Doris decline during the past year and particularly, the last three months - it is as if she is giving up the fight and is getting weary of the experience of living.  As Doris would aptly say as only she can eloquently state, "I'm getting tired of this shit!"

Link to Rosie the Riveter and Doris.... http://www.turn-uppatch.blogspot.com/2013/09/rosie-riveter-and-doris.html


We'll meet again at The Turn-Up Patch on Monday, March 16....

When Hope Springs Eternal

In my last post at 'The Turn-Up Patch', I ended with several photos of a beautiful sunset.  I begin today's post with several photos of a beautiful sunrise  that I was delighted to photograph this past week.  I happened to wake up early enough to notice the red and orange hued sky visible from the window.  Since colors can change dramatically fast, I grabbed my camera and headed outdoors to catch the scene.  It is times as these, I am grateful for the surrounding beauty that country life affords unencumbered by tall buildings and power lines.  

Such scenery can inspire and bring one to reflect on the magnificence of an Almighty God.  We live in a world full of color and splendor in all of its display in creation and yet, it is besieged in distress due to perverted beliefs and infesting corruption.  The world becomes a visible paradox - a contradiction of beauty in the ugliness of overt human suffering.  The axis of good and evil, light and dark rotate in a spiritual dimension manifesting opposite natures.  The media reports anguishing news of the plight of our fellow humanity in the witness of atrocities of what one human being can do to another in the name of their twisted justification.  Pockets of nobility, courage, empathy and compassion are scattered across the globe to counter cruelty but are reported comparatively little to the amount of inhumane news that we hear and read about.

Whether we falter in our daily living or that of present world disorder, where do we catch the glimmer of hope in this day and age of negativity and evil.   Just as the sunrise gives the first rays of light dispelling the darkness of night, so does hope shed a ray of light in the darkness of despair.  The words 'Hope Springs Eternal' come to mind and upon research, found that it is the title of  'An Essay on Man', written by Alexander Pope.....

Hope springs eternal in the human breast;

Man never is, but always to be blessed:

The soul, uneasy and confined from home,

Rests and expatiates in a life to come.

Hope is energy driven -  a springboard that leaps from faith to that which is hoped for - the substance of the unseen.  Hope is color instead of the gray in black and white.  Helen Keller  stated that 'hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible and achieves the impossible'.  As the mythical Phoenix rises from the ashes, renewed and reborn, so does hope give us courage to propel us on to live a new day.  Hope, however, is not mythical.  It is a force centered on God and gives us a glimpse of the eternal.  

Hope is essential even though there could be an ultimate outcome that things did not turn out as desired. What then?  Hope rescues us to meet another day - it transcends us over an unfulfilled outcome into the Divine presence of God where peace and comfort is found.  Hope is never lost in the eternal.

Lewis Smedes wrote, “Is there a hope when hope is taken away? Is there hope when the situation is hopeless? That question leads us to Christian hope, for in the Bible, hope is no longer a passion for the possible. It becomes a passion for the promise.”

Until next time on Monday, March 2 at The Turn-Up Patch.....

Of Swans and Sunsets

The month of January came with its surprises - beauty in swans, sunsets and warm weather!  It was a double surprise to have looked out across the field several weeks ago and see some huge white birds enjoying the day.  Upon closer inspection and to my delight, discovered they were swans.  I call it a surprise as in all the years of living in Eastern Oregon and particularly in the John Day Valley, I have not seen a swan in the area let alone on our ranch property.  I have always loved swans, they represent to me such beauty, grace and symbolism of love.  Of course, this led me to do a post about these beautiful birds.   The photos below were taken from a distance with the camera zoom maxed out.  I didn't want to move in too close and frighten them away.  Consequently, some photos may not be the sharpest but I was thrilled to have such a camera opportunity and to share some pictures with you.

The swans flew in with a flock of Canadian Geese and appear to come and go as they please.  They show up for several days and are absent for a day or two and surprise you again by returning.  There were four swans originally, two adults and two 'adolescents'.  When the birds last appeared, they brought friends and there were seven swans at last sighting.

After checking my photos and investigating what kind of swan these could be, they appear to be a 'Trumpeter Swan'.  I came to this determination because of the slope of its black bill and the slight red color that is on the lower mouth part of the bill (mandible) on the adult swans.  The plumage of adult trumpeter swans is completely white, though their heads and necks are often stained a rusty color from contact with iron compound minerals in the soils during feeding.   I noticed that the sound of this swan was different from the geese they were with.  The Trumpeter has a deep, loud trumpet-like call and has been compared to the sound of a French horn.  Their bills, legs and feet are black and can weigh between 21 - 30 pounds.  The Trumpeter Swan is the largest native waterfowl in North America.

Other facts about swans in general....    
-  They mate for life.  A male swan is called a cob and female is a pen.
-  A young swan in the first year of life is referred to a 'cygnet or juvenile'.
-  An adult swan has a wingspan of more than 7 feet and a height of about 4 feet.
-  They can fly as fast as 50 - 60 miles per hour and are known as the largest flying bird.
-  Life expectancy in a protected environment is 30 years.
-  They are not known to attack humans without cause, and actually can remember humans that have been kind to them.
-  The word swan is one of the oldest names in the English language, coming from the Anglo-Saxons.
-  There are nine varieties of swans.

Some symbolic meanings of swans:
-  Peace and tranquility
-  Native American peoples - connected to one of the most sacred mysteries of the Lakota/Dakota religion, in which the swan acts as a messenger of faith.
-  In England - symbol of loyalty and strength.
-  In ancient Greece - symbol of beauty and grace.
-  Because it has domain over water as well as air, the swan is considered to be the Bird of Light and is associated with the dawning of the Sun.
-  Swans also symbolize sensitivity and love.
-  A reminder of blessings in relationships. 
There are many symbols to be found but the ones listed are a few of the most note worthy.  We can say with assurance, that swans have inspired art, music, literature and dance.

In closing, I am posting the above photos of a beautiful January sunset in a heaven of clouds and color above Mt. Vernon.  God's blessings came in varied forms and surprises that just happened to 'turn up' at The Turn-Up Patch.

Now that we are in the month of February, I look forward to unexpected blessings that only our Creator can bring to uplift, affirm and a reminder that He is the "I AM".

Until Monday, February 16..........

Joe Loudermilk - Performance in Black & White Imaging

My last post was entitled 'Story of Will' and featured photos taken by Will's father, Joe Loudermilk.  As I had mentioned, Joe is my brother-in-law who has had an interest in photography for many years.  Before the digital age, Joe had his own darkroom where he processed his 35 mm camera photos and was self taught in the dynamics of photography.  He applies that knowledge to today's technology wherein the digital camera, computer and editing programs have become his darkroom.  It is here that he develops his photos into a unique style in detailed monochrome.  Joe's architectural profession assists him with his eye for composition and layout that escapes the ordinary in a photograph.  He "sees" an image and encapsulates it into a style using black and white in detailed technique.   

While Joe was here last summer, you would find him with his trusty camera looking for such images to shoot that can be found on a ranch.  The horse photo shown below is one such result of Joe's magic with black and white turning the ordinary into extraordinary.  (Click on photos to enlarge)

The same could be said when his eye sees a promise of beauty in a piece of  broken farm equipment that had outlived its usefulness and now lies in ruined metal.  His discovery of an abandoned vehicle that once carried owners and supplies on the highways of yesterday is now found hidden in a wooded setting.  

On the family's travels through Oregon, Joe spotted a grain storage facility in Condon and had to stop for a photo shoot.  Also pictured below is an image he took of wedding dresses on display in a city window store.  

These are just a few of many diversified photos that are on Joe's website for you to browse through.  There are different categories in his Gallery, including "New Image of the Week".  Gallery selections range from Architectural - to Landscape and Nature - to Places, among others.  Also included is the documentary on William, which was covered in my last post.  If you want to find out more about Joe, you can check out his biography listed on the site.  His website, beautifully done, offers an extensive variety of printed images.   The link is:   www.loudermilkphoto.com/

Joe states:  "I love creating the emotion of the performance when I am post processing my images.  Think of all the different ways a piece of music can be performed by a different artist.  The same is true when developing an image.  But you also need to have a good image/'score' to have a good performance."


I leave you with a quote from John Gay - "We only part to meet again."   Until Monday, February 2, Come! Visit me at The Turn-Up Patch....

The Story of Will

Welcome to my first post of 2015!   I can't think of a better way to start off the new year then to introduce you, dear friends and readers, to Will.   I have been wanting to do a special piece on this extraordinary boy and his family.  I did introduce you to Will's father, Joe Loudermilk, in a July 2013 post featuring his photography.  
 * (The corresponding link is referenced at the end of this post.)

My brother-in-law, Joe and his family paid us a visit this past summer and we had a great time getting reacquainted making up for the years in between.  As it happens in life, children who were once so little are transformed into growing youth, processing into their own identity and carving character through circumstances that present opportunity and challenge.  My nephew Will and his family were faced with more than the average challenge that we meet up with in life.  Will has cerebral palsy caused at birth that left him with a loss of fine motor control affecting his body and speech.  What he lacks in motor skills, he excels in determination.  He comes by his name naturally... WILL!  Short for William but long on the definition of the word will - meaning to have a drive, an aim, a purpose, a resolution, an intent, a volition.  This description is part of Will's internal spirit that is made up of the stuff that makes champions.  

Paladin is another word that comes to mind.  No, this is not about the old western TV series called by that name.  Rather, this word signifies deep meanings and speaks of noble courage, being a defender, guardian, protector, shielder.  All of these qualities are active in the care and encouragement of a loving mother, father, sister and brother.  Will's family champions a champion, pulling together as a supportive team to enrich his quality of life. They cheer-lead, applaud, value and embrace him, making a difference in his experience of daily living.  An intelligent boy, Will's interests are many, ranging from Starwars to Paleontology (study of fossilized prehistoric plants and animals).  He displays keen wit and loves a good joke in the enjoyment of humor.

Joe captured some moments on camera of Will with our border collie dog, Bud.  The two became best pals instantly with Bud constantly pestering Will for attention and affection.  I had a hard time deciding what photo to use of the three that Joe took of these moments.   All three show such heart, I had to post them all for you to see.  (Click on photos for enlargement)

Joe did a documentary story in pictures of his son, simply entitled "Will".  In his own words, he begins with a description of Will but it is through his photographs, you come to know the heart, mind and soul of a champion family.  The picture featured below is taken from the documentary.   I hope that you look deeply into the essence of these very moving photos captured by a Dad who uses his talent in photography to tell a story about family love for their son.  Link:  http://coachingforphotographers.com/coaching-for-photographers-cerebral-palsy-documentary-photography-by-joe-loudermilk/

I found this simple quote by Jack Dempsey that really exemplifies what a champion is - 

"A champion is someone who gets up when he can't" 

* Referenced link post: http://www.turn-uppatch.blogspot.com/2013/07/and-so-god-made-photographer-part-ii.html


Come, visit me next time at The Turn-Up Patch on Monday, January 19th, when we shall continue to explore Joe's artistry in monochrome photography....