Category Archives: photo

resting place


birdbath headstone, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

We found this charming headstone in the Univ of North Carolina cemetery (a graveyard, on campus!) during our family vacation last summer. I would love a stone like this to mark my resting spot. What fun it would be to have birds frolicking overhead!

Today has been a busy day, so much so that even a flock of birds flying through my bedroom probably won’t disturb my sleep tonite. At the end of yoga class this evening, as I was lying in “corpse pose,” I had a moment to ‘live’ my death. It was a delicious thing to lie there and submit completely to the floor beneath me. To feel spent from a vigorous yoga session (completely with Y’s very special arm pulls and neck adjustments).

I can only hope that someday when it’s my time, I can submit just as peacefully. Knowing of the good life that I’ve lived and being ready to let go of the world. Forever.

my boys

like father, like son, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

Another photo tribute to today’s birthday boy. Not only is John an awesome writer, partner, and friend, he is also an incredibly good father. This pic of him and GameBoy always reminds me of John’s tender and thoughtful parenting (and also how thrilled I was to have a boy-baby that would grow up to be like my beloved).

John and I started our family when we were very young and very poor. But love was abundant in our home. And it still is.

weathered


bunny, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

This wee bunny statue is a favorite in my garden. We found it churned up during the rototilling of an adjacent empty garden plot. I suspect that this little critter has observed many growing seasons.

I am attracted to the weathered, the vintage, and all that is chipped and worn with age. A new bunny statue would hardly catch my eye. But this one…I can stare at it for hours.

in the rain


IMG_3604, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

It’s raining again today, a welcome respite from the dry winters of the past few years.

This morning we awoke to find the tree in front of our home lying down on the ground. Just having missed crashing into our bedroom window or smashing the cars parked in front of our place

I suspect more trees will be down before this rain and wind is done.

The pic above is from another rainy day–more than a year ago–when our family visited the Japanese Garden in Portland.

old-fashioned


my singer, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

Though I am often thrilled by the latest technologies, I am an old-fashioned girl at heart. An example is my sewing machine: a 1942 Singer. It works like a charm despite being older than my mother.

Every once in awhile I think it might be cool to have a programmable computerized sewing machine. The kind that practically sews for you. But I quickly abandon that idea as I remember the dependability and beauty of my Singer.

It’s all I need.
🙂

oh-so-pretty


IMG_5415, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

My friend TanyaSue crafts beautiful jewelry. This weekend I photographed a few of her creations. And it was a joy to play with backdrops and lighting and angles (if you click on the photo you can see more of her pieces on my flickr site)

Though I embrace simplicity, I am enchanted by the simple beauty of items like crystals and beads. So pretty.

open thine eyes


begonia, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

“Leave this chanting and singing and telling of beads! Whom dost thou worship in this lonely dark corner of a temple with doors all shut?
Open thine eyes and see thy God is not before thee!
He is there where the tiller is tilling the hard ground and where the pathmaker is breaking stones.
He is with them in sun and in shower, and his garment is covered with dust.”
~Rabindranath Tagore

when life gives you lemons…


lemon tree, oh so pretty, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

When we moved into our new home we found a lovely lime tree just off the side of our back porch. CatGirl made a superb key lime pie from the fruit and we’ve using them in various recipes and beverages. The limes were uncharacteristically tasty and sweet.

Lo and behold, when I was snapping pics on the back porch today I looked up to the tippity top branches of the tree and discovered…lemons. So I guess it’s a lemon tree. Yum!

pilgrimclassic: a photo tribute to a well-traveled limb

Originally published on December 13, 2006:

Bidding farewell to most of my leg today as I upgrade the socket, cosmesis, stockings, and so forth. A pilgrimgirl first: a photo essay tribute to a well-traveled limb.

As I put this together I asked myself why I wanted to take pictures of my leg, why this was important to me. And I realized how much I wish I had similar photos of my real leg before it was amputated. To help me remember.

Update: here is a ‘key’ to the photos for those that are difficult to identify
1) both feet
2) my worn-out heel
3) a tear in the covering at my knee
4) the valve that seals my suction socket
5) my big toe w/a shredded nylon over it
6) looking down the back of the leg starting at the heel

my loves


dark carnival boookstore, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

John and books, books and John. What more could a girl ask for?
(note: the kidlings were upstairs at the bookstore, searching for ways to spend their Christmas money…)