I posted this in response to a post on my daughter's blog. She was riding public transit in Baltimore.
She noticed the unsolicited and selfless attentions of an elderly man to his wife.
Ah, true love ! May it live forever in bright light and fairy dust! ( to quote a friend)
Your post reminds me of the couple I saw on my first trip abroad in 1999. I hit the ground in England armed with an instiable appetite for history and a 35mm camera.
It was a glorious Saturday morning in the park on High Street. Kensington Palace fairly shone in the sun. I was soaking up local color and listening to the myriad of accents swirling round me.
Children were painting on the sidewalk or feeding the pigeons. The ubiquitous Brits were walking the ubiquitous British dogs.
There was an elderly couple seated on a park bench in the sunlight. They were well up in years and dressed as some English people do, in both hat and coat. her hat was fashionably out of fashion. Obviously, this was an occasion for them.
Occasionally, the gent would bend his head towards the white haired woman and gesture with his cane at some far off sight that he did not want her to miss.
She would tug affectionately on his coatsleeve to draw his attention to another sight to be seen. They were enjoying both one another's company the English sunshine and the impromptu entertainment..
I realized that they had seen so much of life and history. They had survived the War, seen the devastation of their city, lost loved ones in the rubble and experienced Hitler's hate up close and personal. They were survivors, still comfortable and even pleased with one another's company some 70+ years later.
As I watched them for a while, I suddenly realized that amidst all the other goings on in the park, this was the one scene I was MEANT to see.
Here was the picture that defined the whole experience for me. When I snapped the shutter I KNEW that wonderful as the shot was it lacked SOMETHING. I quickly blew on the lens to fog it ( it IS England after all) I waited while the haze cleared from the center of the lens outward. then I snapped again.
Since this was still film territory for me I had to wait until I got back home to see the results.
The result is the most fabulous picture I have ever taken, both from a technical standpoint and an aesthetic one. The lens is cleared jsut enough to see the subjects ( the couple) clearly. The rest is a hazy watercolor fantasy.
It still hangs in my living room on the England Wall. This is a testament to unconditional love.
I understand your perspective!
2 comments:
I'd love to see that picture...I've often told myself that we all have a responsibility (almost) to record things like this, because no one else may ever see that specific thing in the same way. That's the philosophy that informs my writing, for sure. Good for you for taking the time and effort to TAKE the picture!
Thanks for the picture. PICTURES. Plural. I just scrolled thru and saw ones that I think you've added since I first read some of the entries. One thought: my old eyes are having difficulty reading the small white print on the light background....
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