Everything Has A Purpose
an ode to the longest days
This week I have been working with color images, which is rare for me, but I thought it fits these, glowy, sticky, long, and precious summer days. I also wrote some words that go with it, a poem of sorts. I am still a fan of arranging everything with lots of space in between. It’s like pages of a book, or a wall in a gallery. Just think of it that way.
The cat tends to wake me at 5.30 in the morning these days. She got into this habit of playing with pens or papers laying on my desk in our attic bedroom. If I hide everything the night before, she finds something to make a bit of noise. It drives me crazy because it only takes a little bit of noise to rip me out of my dreams. If I don’t want to get up for the day just yet, I walk over quickly, grab her, return to bed and put her right next to me. She usually stays and falls asleep. Who knows why she does what she does.
I sigh and close my eyes for a bit before getting up for the day for good.
Honestly, it’s ok. These longest days of the year are so beautiful, especially the early mornings filled with the birds greeting each other and everything around them. How can you think about sleeping while listening to them?
I attempt to resist the urge to check my phone and risk going down the rabbit hole of news or other distractions. What horrible thing happened yesterday? It’s a mess out there, let’s leave it at that. The singing of the birds continues.
This weekend marks the summer solstice. This weekend also marks my father’s birthday and the anniversary of my brother’s passing. Yes, they fall on the same day. The limp from that painful day 19 years ago has healed over time, at times it stings and occasionally I can feel a sharp pain. But we all walk with limps, don’t we, some more visible than others.
It’s going to be a hot weekend. Hot and humid, I am sure. I do complain about the humidity in Minnesota, but overall I love summer more now than when I was younger. Maybe it’s because now more than ever I need all the light, warmth and long days it can provide. Summer is welcome with all its imperfectly sticky and bug filled glory. The days are slowly going to become shorter again. Change is inevitable.
Items Of Note
Our next Creative Hour for paid subscribers is on Saturday, July 19 at 11 am CST. This Zoom gathering is for anyone who would like to connect with other photographers/artists and share work, give and receive feedback, or simply hang out and observe. It has been a wonderful way to connect with artists from all over the country, and we have enjoyed seeing each other regularly.
Come join us! Bring your cup of coffee and some work to share. This is a low pressure environment where we exchange ideas, discuss different approaches, and feel inspired and refreshed afterwards.
I will share the Zoom link as it gets closer.
Lovely post and images, Manuela! I so enjoy the long days of summer and try to spend as much time outside as possible. We’re fortunate here in Flagstaff, AZ to have relatively cool temperatures, very low humidity, and (almost) no bugs. I feel such gratitude during my morning walks in the forest and after-dinner strolls around the neighborhood. For these reasons, the final line of your poem really resonated with me—my appreciation for ‘the beauty that is close by’ has only grown in recent years, and I find myself less drawn to faraway travel than I once was.
Beautiful. I love the layout!