and there were threads in the garden and there were stars in the leaves and there jewels on the flowers and there were diamonds in the webs
and there were threads in my mind tethered to sorrow beauty lament wonder love
and there were stars in my heart sparkling memories regrets dreams loss hope
and there were jewels in my soul brilliantly reflecting the promises of my heavenly Papa the redemption of the Lamb the deliverance from the shadows of my brokenness
and there were diamonds all around family friends love companionship a smile an encouraging word gratitude melodies light beauty song
i wonder where summer is going and why the hostas’ trumpets wither in the song of the morning gold the moisture saturated early september air will soon surrender to hoodie worthy chilly days
and hosta trumpets will disappear and silenced shrills that once inhabited golden shells gently rest bearing witness to the symphonies that played endlessly on measureless summer days
but now summer’s bags are packed the trees wait and will soon honor summer’s passage tossing golden and crimson leaves in a reluctant celebration to the closing of summer nights and songs and to welcome the crystal air of winter’s refining lament
The day began with a beautiful sunrise, courtesy of the Illinois River.
Then my wife and I worked on a small wallpaper project in our main floor bathroom. No one was hospitalized, the bathroom looks great, and we are still married. The true test of a couple’s emotional health is their ability to finish a wallpaper project!
Finally, hopped on the Kawasaki and took a ride to the wind farms on this beautiful day.
Hope you have a wonderful week. Thanks for stopping by.
For as long as I have kept this blog I have been taking photographs on the street that sits just behind the subdivision where we live, in our little town of Minooka, Illinois. I have captured countless images of sunsets, sunrises, clouds, winter scenes, and on and on. My usual routine is to go to the gym, then, if the sky and clouds are interesting, and if Daylight Savings Time allows, I’ll take a walk and enjoy the ever-changing, always beautiful landscape that makes up our little corner of the world. Over the years, if I may say, I have captured some memorable moments. This morning was memorable.
On my way home I noticed the mist creeping over the soybeans from south to north as the sun was about to peek over the horizon. I got home, grabbed the camera, and started walking.
I love early morning quiet. I love taking pictures while most of the town is asleep, or just getting up for school and work. The perpetual whoosh of Interstate 80, punctured by the occasional deep, repetitive blat of a diesel truck using it’s engine to slow down is always in the air. But this morning, even I-80 is unusually quiet. Maybe the truckers were enjoying the mist, and golden, morning light. Thanks for stopping by.
…ride to live. We live in an ocean of corn and soybeans. After 20 years, I have come to appreciate the beauty of the Midwest plains, however… it is quite flat. I took a ride north to a small town called Scales Mound, IL. It has a population of 400 and is about a mile south of the highest point in Illinois. So, naturally, it is also home to High Point Park. The road up to this town was a stunning trip with beautiful vistas of farms and rolling hills. Unfortunately, it is a two lane road with a small shoulder, so stopping to take pictures would not be a very safe choice. I think a walk on that road with camera in hand is in my future. Thanks for stopping by.
still on the journey through achromatic beauty everything is okay no really it is well sort of i can’t make sense of a anything everything will be okay at least i hope it will but there is the now the inbetween the stumbling not quite sure which way to turn i recognize this strange space of uncertainty and stillness and i cry fast forwarding isn’t fun i cry feels like a lonely drowning i cry a jumbled pile of grief and loss wading through shattered hope and i cry God help me to accept the immovable reality of now and rest inhale exhale rest i cry
a fleeting embrace
ending
with one last glance
one last wave
as you step
through security
with no one to help you
with your insecurity
ushered into a waiting room after transferring a kiss from you hand to her forehead overwhelming outcomes swirl in your mind
a quiet prayer folded hands shoulders crushed beneath sorrow and pain rest gently rest i’ll see you again
a collection of expectations neatly organized as you donate them to the upside down reality that is also your lament
younger days when smiles were abundant surrender to deep steel eyes aged by the weight of all that you must release all that you thought was the melody of your journey
memories that just fade and others that won’t go away songs that remain falling into the echoes of time and reminiscence of sad joy and mournful gratitude
sunsets loudly dazzle your soul swallowed by night colors overtaken by unstoppable darkness
still i welcome every hello every greeting every start every beginning every hope every hug every grace every possibility every giggle every sunset every sunrise while holding all the goodbyes
there is a desperate feigned beauty to a closed heart not present to pain like a tragic lullaby an inconsolable melody celebrating safety striving to look like peace reluctant to feel locked up in dark silence encased in emptiness
choose to feel to stay connected to what’s real stay in the pain even in the rain gifts are to be found don’t turn around lament all that is broken laugh as if it’s all okay cry because you know it’s not take a step of faith none of us is free from danger find a friend who will walk beside you and let you feel
rutakintome pictures 
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