When I work up this morning…

the first thing I thought of was one of my favorite books.  “Ahab’s Wife, or The Star Gazer” by Sena Jeter Naslund.  The heroine of the story is Una Spenser.  She lived a life on her own terms and is a remarkably compelling character.  I haven’t read the book for years, but Una woke me up today.  I guess it’s time to reread…perhaps to my daughters over Christmas break.  I’ve been moving too fast—so it’s a good thing this message didn’t escape me.  If you’ve tried to read Moby Dick and couldn’t stick with it OR if you’re a big fan of Moby Dick then you will love Ahab’s Wife.  So many minds I respect have loved this book.

ahabs wife quote lillibridge

South Dakota Snapshots

I was in South Dakota with my family last weekend. On Saturday I had the opportunity to borrow my niece’s truck and go on a late afternoon abandoned farmhouse hunt.  What I found was visually very pleasing to my eye.  The light was gorgeous.  I was walking in ditches wearing my favorite cowboy boots. It was warm and I kept finding these images seemingly rising out of the sky.  These photos represent resilience, strength, courage and yet they also convey a feeling of loneliness and longing.  I found the starkness quite beautiful.

On my farmhouse hunt I got so excited as I did a u-turn into an overgrown driveway and I was ready to shoot loads of pictures.  However, I quickly realized that I was at the same farmhouse I shot in August with my Mom.  Perhaps there is a reason that I got to shoot it again in different light in a different season.