He goes around with his net, scouring the butterfly bush. Catching moths and swallowtails. Being gentle. Putting his hand inside to guide the little creature out. We put our heads together, his hands cupped around the butterfly and slowly his fingers give way to this amazing work of art. It flies from under us, the breeze of a thousand flutters wisps by our heads and we smile. For this is how we spend our days.
Sometimes it’s refreshing to go back and find photos you took from long ago. When you took photos without much thought. When you didn’t worry about who would look at them or, if anyone would look at them at all.
Photos full of memories and good, good times.
And that’s it.
I wasn’t sure what to call this post. But thought this might be best. Right now, I think many businesses are cutting corners, cutting costs, to deal with this weird economy we’re in. My film shop is no exception. Last month I learned the lady, who has developed my film for the last year and a half, was laid-off. I am trying to think what I was doing in the shop that day and if in fact, the film from our California trip was processed by someone else. I was a bit peturbed by this. She was one of the nicest and helpful people in there. She talked with me about Ms. Diana many times and introduced me to my Yashica Mat. My film was always developed and processed well. And it was a really big loss for my kids who were greeted by a koala puppet every time we went in.
Now I know it’s not a coincidence my film looked so great. I got back the film I brought in from my Diana and the final pictures weren’t cropped or anything. For those of you who have Diana’s, you know the winding of the film after each picture is kind of a crap-shoot. Never really knowing how far to go. I always go a little past the number as a general rule of thumb. And my pictures have always returned without a black line on one side. But not this time. It was like, whoever processed them, decided to do it quickly and without thought. It just made me sad to think so many places are doing this nowadays. And my film shop is no longer an exception.
It seems Summer is in it’s full fury. Fourth of July came and went. Now it’s visits to the pool, mixed with the library, morning schooling sessions and whatever else we can cram into a day. The weather has been hot this year. I feel like I continually smell of chlorine and my hair is blonder in spots than ever before. My skin is dry and scaly. I’m not one for being tan all the time. But my tan lines are in their glory. If you train outdoors, it’s inevitable you will be very dark. A 17-year-old me would love this. But the almost 36-year-old is cringing. I keep thinking, “what will this do?” I don’t want to look like the grandmother in “What About Mary” when I get older.
We celebrated the Fourth at Longwood Gardens. Last year we went for Mother’s Day and I can honestly say, this is a favorite place for all of us. It’s amazing what someone will do to save trees. Mr. du Pont didn’t want the land to be developed, so he bought all of it. You can read the history here. The trees are amazing. There are so many varieties and species of everything, the gardener in your family will be in heaven. And the fireworks were crazy. I am pretty sure the ground moved during the show. The one building that amazes all of us is the conservatory. It’s like the most extreme greenhouse you could ever walk through. The place is also kid-friendly. There are huge treehouses and a water garden, a guide book called “Scent Seekers,” as well as open fields when your children feel like running. Plus, it’s a photographer’s dreamland.
Roaming Violet 