Author: rutakintome

I married Ruth, my high school sweetheart, in 1983 and we have four children and 6 grandchildren. I have been the worship pastor at Mission Bible Church since 2004. We are located in Minooka, a southwest suburb of Chicago. I love singing, bicycling, music, Mahler, boxing, coffee, movies, The Beatles, sunsets, coffee, Mahler, the seashore, sunsets at the seashore, coffee, and… the seashore. Originally from New York, I grew up 15 minutes from the beautiful beaches of southern Long Island. I have a Fujifilm X-T5 that I use to capture the world I see. I also enjoy writing about the images that surface in my mind and heart as I work with the images from my camera. Thanks for stopping by!

turn to clear vision

turn to clear vision

Back to Jones Beach State Park for this capture. Have a wonderful weekend!

a father’s joy

ice falls

I can remember saying this to each of my four children, when they were around two or three years old: “Now, you are going to stay this age, right? No more growing up. Just stay right here.” Of course none of them listened, and, even though the experience of watching your children grow is bittersweet, there is also the joy of loving them and relating to them as adults. This is my oldest daughter. One of our favorite things to do is go hiking at Starved Rock State Park. We hike, walk, and even as I enjoy her beauty and conversation, and, what she is doing in life, I still wish, just a little bit, that she (and the other three kids) was 2 or 3 again. I am blessed. Looking forward to more hikes Andrea.

seaside2

seaside2

Back to Jones Beach State Park for this post. This is part of a series of images were taken back in January on a rather cold and dull day, so it has been fun working with the pictures to try and find some detail and perspective. I love the shore when it is like this…quiet…deserted…salty air…loud, winter surf…time speeds away and slows down all at once…if that makes sense…..

the tree said to the light…

the lamp said to the tree

I wonder what the tree did say to the light… any thoughts?

jones beach water tower 3

Jones Beach Water Tower3

Another shot of this pretty cool piece of architecture located at Jones Beach State Park on the southern shores of Long Island.

tree-flections

tree-flections

I think I just created a new word! Taken at the Illinois River in Morris. I changed the background so you can see the entire image. Hope you have a great week!

jones beach water tower 2

jones beach water tower2

And just before you head out to enjoy your weekend, another shot of the Jones Beach Water Tower. I have a few more images coming from my trip back home this past January. The Art Deco style of this tower (this 84 year old beauty is an actual functioning water tower) is representative of the bath houses and other structures in this beautiful state park.

seaside

seaside

The Jones Beach Boardwalk still manages to charm after all these years. If you have been around my blog at all you know about my love for the shore, and especially, the beaches at Jones Beach and Robert Moses. When I smell the salty air, walk on the sand and boardwalk, and put my feet in the water (which I did when this was taken on a cold day in January), I am taken back to so many moments spent on these shores…..  I remember clinging to my dad, laughing and frightened all at once, while he fulfilled my request to take me out into the sea. I would hold on tighter and tighter as each Atlantic wave approached, thinking for sure we would be knocked down, but my dad just stood there…against that BIG ocean…to me he was the most powerful man in the world. To this day, in so many ways, he is.

sea of galilee

seaofgalilee

Taken a couple of years ago when I had the opportunity to visit the Holy Land. My journey through Israel was one of spiritual and life changing significance for me. Hope you enjoy.

signs of spring?

signs of spring?

Taken this week at a park along the Illinois River. It was a cold, but sunny day, so off I went on my favorite activity: riding and taking pictures. Somewhere in this world there is a Spring looking for the Chicago area. To that Spring I say, “WE ARE HERE!”