Turning point

I took this photo at a very old and rugged cemetery less than a mile from our house. While I had all sorts of great ideas for capturing shadow and light around the grave stones, the shooting session was cut a bit short as the temperature fell well below zero. I also forgot to reset my ISO. The entire shoot was done at a very noisy 1600.

Spring is just starting to shine through the dead of winter in Minnesota after a long stretch of cold and snow. As a child, I remember damming up small rivers that ran the length of curbs and sidewalks--the result of winter's snow succumbing to spring's warming air--with sticks and rocks and mud and watching as the river always, always found a way around the boy-made obstacle a few minutes later. As I look out my window now, I see places on our street and our driveway where I might have constructed such a dam to briefly hold the water I can see melting away from the snow covering only part of our lawn. What now seems so unsightly--week old snow covered by dust and mud--has, every spring, a natural cleaning process wherein the snow melts, the water washes away, evaporates, and the mud that once tarnished the pureness of winter eventually returns to the earth.

Much has changed at our home, too, since my last post. Our son Miles was born on December 29, 2007 and has been nothing but a joy. He is likely to be the only kid in his class with two middle names, Harold and Michel, tributes to my and Emily's dads. After taking time off and returning briefly to work, Emily decided to take a longer leave and stay home with Miles. I'm looking forward to the flexibility it will give us to enjoy more time together as a family. Additionally, I have found new work within the same company that allows me to work from home. The time not spent in stressful and polluted traffic is priceless.