Tag: Photography

Macro Monday: After the rain

~ oneletterup ~ 11 Comments

Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.

Rachel Carson
Peony after the rain

Last week my daughter and I visited the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, DC. An overcast sky hung overhead. It was the day after a heavy rain and many of the flowers were laboring under the weight of residual raindrops. Hopefully they were able to spring back up once the sun came out.

In the meantime I took advantage…as it’s one of my favorite subjects – Water on Flowers. A fleeting photo opportunity before those drops disappeared!

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Mother’s Day – What I See

~ oneletterup ~ 12 Comments

Mother’s Day is odd at this stage in my life. I think of my two adult children…my 2 adventures in motherhood. They live 500 miles away, so an in-person celebration rarely happens…pandemic or no pandemic. A quiet day at home with phone calls will be what I look forward to. Having children of my own made this a holiday to enjoy. Now it’s a long distance joy.

These beautiful flowers arrived from my daughter and her family with a sweet message of love and gratitude. Their lovely card arrived yesterday. I am very happy with that…along with memories of so many Mother’s Days gone by. I can see in my mind’s eye all the hugs, handmade cards, thoughtful gifts, breakfast in bed (complete with a printed menu one year), traditional photos in front of the forsythia (if it was blooming!) in the side yard. My in-laws, who only lived 30 minutes away, would come over to share in the celebration. “Here’s your Mother’s Day!” my mother-in-law once announced upon arrival…handing me a gorgeous hanging fuchsia plant to display on our deck. I always got a kick out of her – she got right to the point. I smile thinking back on it.

I noticed this flower arrangement includes my favorite “fun flowers” – snapdragons! Even now, I just can’t resist pinching one and seeing it “talk.” Smiles there too.

Happy Mother’s Day!

One Word Sunday: See or Sea
Cee’s Flower of the Day

Macro Monday: Stumped

~ oneletterup ~ 9 Comments

It certainly looks like this tree fought long and hard during its demise. I discovered its stump along the way during a recent walk in the woods. I’m not sure why the tree was cut down, but whenever I see something like this I always wonder what it lived through. Those rings signify age, but that’s all I know.

Every tree has a story…just like us.

Happy Monday!

Ragtag Daily Prompt: Stump

Lost

~ oneletterup ~ 30 Comments

One Word Sunday: Lost

Lost. Now here’s a topic I am intimately familiar with. My claim to fame, such as it were. Spatially challenged? Don’t try to follow me to the elevator when I leave a hotel room. It will take a couple of tries before I get there. Those doors all look the same. They do!

My earliest dreams – probably at the age of 6 or 7 – were nightmarish…riding the bus home from school and being dropped off in a neighborhood that at first looked like mine. I’d walk from house to house looking for My House. The familiar ranch with the brick front porch. I became hopelessly lost in those dreams and woke up in a panic. Funny how those memories stay intact.

It didn’t improve with age. I needed a map or written directions for (many) months when driving to a new job 20 minutes away – this was back in 1995. One family joke is…what would happen to some poor soul who asked ME for directions? It’s happened and I freeze.

So, imagine my eternal gratitude and celebration when the Garmin navigator device was invented – replacing the ever reliable AAA Trip-tick with its booklet full of detailed maps. And then miracle of miracles…GPS google maps! Live action and an insistent voice that keeps Recalculating! At least I don’t have to do it.

My email spam folder often provides comic relief – begging me to click on links and apply to work for a major ride sharing company. Can you imagine? They obviously did very little research – if any – as to who they target for advertising. Even with a GPS chirping away, it would be risky business hiring me as a driver.

No matter…I still have a stash of street maps jammed in the seat pocket of my car…just in case. And they always work.