Last lazy autumn afternoon sun warmth walk
Before frigid’s bitter reception quickened the pace.
If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough. – Robert Capa
Later on this Veterans Day will be Leanne Cole and Laura Macky’s 37th Monochrome Madness. Thank Leanne for putting this week’s Monochrome Madness together while she’s on the road doing photo workshops. Do stop by Leanne’s blog and show your appreciation for everyone’s efforts.
“The Liberty Memorial, located in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, is a memorial to the soldiers who died in World War I and houses The National World War I Museum, as designated by the United States Congress in 2004. Groundbreaking commenced November 1, 1921, and the city held a site dedication. The memorial was completed and dedicated on November 11, 1926. On September 21, 2006, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne declared Liberty Memorial a National Historic Landmark.” — Wikipedia
On Remberance/Sunday I visited the only official First World War museum in the U.S. A beautiful setting as the museum is located on a hill which also offers some excellent downtown skyline views from the top of the 217 foot tower. An honorable tribute to all those that have served. Tomorrow will be Veterans Day but remember always…
The Things That Make a Soldier Great
by Edgar Guest
The things that make a soldier great and send him out to die,
To face the flaming cannon’s mouth nor ever question why,
Are lilacs by a little porch, the row of tulips red,
The peonies and pansies, too, the old petunia bed,
The grass plot where his children play, the roses on the wall:
‘Tis these that make a soldier great.
He’s fighting for them all.
‘Tis not the pomp and pride of kings that make a soldier brave;
‘Tis not allegiance to the flag that over him may wave;
For soldiers never fight so well on land or on the foam
As when behind the cause they see the little place called home.
Endanger but that humble street whereon his children run,
You make a soldier of the man who never bore a gun.
What is it through the battle smoke the valiant soldier sees?
The little garden far away, the budding apple trees,
The little patch of ground back there, the children at their play,
Perhaps a tiny mound behind the simple church of gray.
The golden thread of courage isn’t linked to castle dome
But to the spot, where’er it be — the humblest spot called home.
And now the lilacs bud again and all is lovely there
And homesick soldiers far away know spring is in the air;
The tulips come to bloom again, the grass once more is green,
And every man can see the spot where all his joys have been.
He sees his children smile at him, he hears the bugle call,
And only death can stop him now — he’s fighting for them all.
“Benedicto: May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. May your rivers flow without end, meandering through pastoral valleys tinkling with bells, past temples and castles and poets towers into a dark primeval forest where tigers belch and monkeys howl, through miasmal and mysterious swamps and down into a desert of red rock, blue mesas, domes and pinnacles and grottos of endless stone, and down again into a deep vast ancient unknown chasm where bars of sunlight blaze on profiled cliffs, where deer walk across the white sand beaches, where storms come and go as lightning clangs upon the high crags, where something strange and more beautiful and more full of wonder than your deepest dreams waits for you — beyond that next turning of the canyon walls.”
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” — Leonardo da Vinci
Nagoya Marimbas – Steve Reich
“It takes a long time to become young.” — Pablo Picasso
“Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before.”
Audre Lorde
“A few days ago I walked along the edge of the lake and was treated to the crunch and rustle of leaves with each step I made. The acoustics of this season are different and all sounds, no matter how hushed, are as crisp as autumn air.” – Eric Sloane
There is one thing the photograph must contain, the humanity of the moment. — Robert Frank
I discovered that wedding photos cost a lot less at a thrift sale. Even less if you have a camera with you, which is how I captured this one. These unknown people will be at Leanne Cole and Laura Macky’s Monochrome Madness event later on today. Make a vow to discover what fantastic photos are on Leanne Cole’s blog thanks to Leanne, Laura, and a party of very talented photographers.
♥‿♥
“…can’t trust that day.” — The Mamas & Papas
Maverick Mist 