Everything For Love

My friends George Forss and Donna Wynbrandt had a reception for their brilliant work Sunday  – he is a legendary photographer and she is a gifted outsider artist – at the Copper Trout Art Gallery in Jackson, N.Y. and Maria and I went to see them there and cheer them on. I am always privileged to take a photo of these two devoted lovers. Donna has a regal presence about her and George's live defines the drama and wonder of the genius.

But as much as I am drawn to their work – George's work will decorate my new study – I am equally drawn as a photographer to their great and timeless love for one another. Whenever I hear the story of George and Donna – he is one of the most celebrated urban landscape photographers in the world and she lived on the fringes of  the urban world for some time before revealing her great gifts as an artist, both of them confronting and overcoming profound challenges of life, always coming together, always returning to their love, always working to create their art and bring it to the world. Their love suffuses their brilliant work.

It is such a compelling story, I never tire of hearing it and writing about it.  In a sane world, I would get to write their book myself, but I do not think that is a possibility for me. But I hope to help them find a writer who can take on this great story and do justice to it. It is not really the kind of story commercial publishers seek out these days, for reasons I accept but do not quite understand. Maybe one will.

Their photos always speak to me of love, you can see it and touch it in the photographs, Donna always turning to George, George accepting this love and acceptance and trust and thus giving it back. They remind me that love is everything, it is the only thing, it is so often the lost thing, and these two loving spirits have found it and clung to it for dear life, lighting up their world and ours. They remind me of my own feeling for Maria, she just lights up my world, and I hope I do the same for her, even when we are tired, spent, confused. I see myself in them, I see the best of all of us in them.

Love is everything. It is the only thing.

Caught

I'm not much into bragging, but I am proud of having outsmarted and caught Mother today in her own barn, something I can testify (and so can countless mice, squirrels, rats and moles) is not an easy thing to do. Mother was on to us from the first this morning, she took one look at the dog crate and vanished. She always comes to me and Maria, but was nowhere to be found all day. In the evening we went back to her barn and I know where she hangs out so I climbed up to the hay  bales and held a can of smelly wet cat food beneath here and she came slithering out, keeping a distance.

I brought it down into the barn, put it on a shelf and backed away. She appeared a few minutes later, watching me, watching the food. I waited until she had licked it and was beginning to eat it, and I reached out and grabbed her by the scruff and butt and walked her out of the barn where Maria was waiting with a crate and we put the crate on its side and dropped her into it, making sure she couldn't pop out like she did this morning. She is protesting loudly, but is in the barn in a large crate with cat litter, food, water and a bed Maria prepared for her. Minnie is in the crate next to her, where they will remain for a couple of days. Then we will release them both into the barn and their new lives.

Mother is the smartest and toughest animal I know, and she has been at Bedlam Farm from the first. I am much relieved to have caught her – it was upsetting to think of her hiding out there, which she is quite capable of doing. She's home now, and is smart enough to take care of herself. Peace in the heart.

Bedlam Doghouse

The dogs were happy to sniff and explore the Bedlam Farm doghouse, which they knew from the old farm. The donkeys, curious as ever, wanted a look too. I think Red might use it, and Frieda on a hot day. It means a lot to me, I got it from an old farm – it was home to a great working dog who spent the whole year around living in it when he wasn't working. A symbol of our life with dogs.

Strong Women

I think the key to success in the modern world is having a lot of strong women around and listening to them and doing what they say. Jenna Woginrich and Maria went to the old farm and brought out this heavy doghouse – it was Izzy's favorite hangout, and I was eager to see it here. These two women are tough.

Rocky's New Friends

Rocky has some new friends, I've been letting the sheep in with him for two reasons – one, for company, and secondly, so that they can become easy with him, something I think the donkeys will pick up on. The sheep found him and he was very much at ease being with him. A farm is a whole, a symmetry, each part affecting the other. This is good for him. At dusk, he'll go back in his stall and the donkeys brought in with him. Red will get the sheep back into their pasture. Hay for everybody.