TROY - Third Ride of the Year

Originally uploaded by rfin.

Dipped down into the City Cemetary from 11th Ave and spotted this on the way back up the hill from my dad's grave.

grate memories

grate
Originally uploaded by rfin.

When my teenage son was little boy, he loved to play with his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys. Sometimes we played together and sometimes we wrote a Turtle Adventure Story.

Our former Governor Olene Walker asked all adults to read for 20 minutes each day with a child. A variation on the theme is write with a child. You're their scribe. You ask the question "What happen's next?" and you capture their answers. If you write just a few lines of text at the bottom of several blank sheets, they can then illustrate their narrative. Staple them down the left side and you've got a picture book written and illustrated by your child.

The M is for Madeline

M is for Madeline
Originally uploaded by rfin.

Highland and East High students agreed to paint the traditional H rock as an M in honor of Madeline. I don't know if this is the first time Highland and East have agreed on what should be on the rock, but I hope it's not the last time. Competition is great. I'm glad the schools have a rivalry, but I'd also like to see more of this kind of cooperation. The M is proof you can do both. It will be interesting to see how long it stays up.

Shot on SROY - Second Ride of the Year

sorrow and sunshine

Graveside Service

father, son and daughter

balloons soaring

zen writers meet

Originally uploaded by rfin.

Our monthly meeting came at a good time for all of us. I'm finding there's nothing quite like a supportive group of writers. They're good when you're feeling great, or not so great. They share in your victories and challenges. They inspire you to write with their listening, writing, comments and questions.

I'm getting some idea of how many lives my niece touched through this memorial site. Today my wife made color copies of all the snapshots we've taken of Madeline over the years. It's remarkable just how many of our family photos document her growth from infant to sweet sixteen.

the morning breaks

the morning breaks Originally uploaded by rfin.

I've listened to Maurice Ravel's Pavane pour une Infante defunte (Pavane for a dead princess) several times in the few days following the deaths my 102-year-old grandmother-in-law and my sweet 16-year-old niece, her great granddaughter. Grandma's death was long anticipated. My niece's was not. What a contrast in age and in the anticipation of what the earthly future would be for each of these noble women.