7 July

Downpour: Caught In The Storm

by Jon Katz
Caught In The Storm
Caught In The Storm

We got home from dinner just as a dark storm cloud hovered over the pasture, the donkeys and sheep had retreated to the barn, Chloe would keep grazing in a tornado, Maria went out with a halter to get her in, and as she got there, it began to pour. I had my monochrome, and it was pitch black, so I was plelased to get this much detail in the photo. It caught the feeling of the storm just as Maria got out there and calmly let Chloe back into the barn as it poured, I was trying to protect my camera from the rain. Held it under my shirt.

7 July

Kelly Lost Her Puppies

by Jon Katz
Kelly Lost Her Puppies
Kelly Lost Her Puppies

You could see in Kelly Nolan’s eyes tonight at the Bog that there was some sadness, the radiant smile was not quite as radiant as usual, and for good reason. Kelly’s new rescue dog turned out to be pregnant and went into labor yesterday, it was a long and painful day, Kelly’s dog lost three of her five puppies, the Cambridge Vet was able to save two of them. I happened to be at the vet with Red when Kelly came out of the examining room, she looked understandably stricken.

Even by today, the stoic Kelly was working to get past  her sadness – the restaurant and bar at the Bog were jammed.  I knew she had been at the vet all day, they had to finally perform an emergency operation to save the two puppies. “What did this cost you?,” I asked. Kelly smiled, “$1,300,” I put it on the credit card.

She shrugged, and smiled. “What can you do?, I couldn’t let them all die.”

Kelly does not complain, she accepts life with grace.

I thought of all the tables Kelly has to clear and the drinks Kelly has to serve to pay off that credit card bill, and I think I’ll start a private collection to raise some money and help Kelly pay off that bill, we have all been there. If anyone wishes to contribute – no pressure – you can send cash or a check to Jon Katz or Bedlam Farm/Post Office Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

If a bunch of us gather small amounts, we should be able to put a big dent in that bill. I don’t want to do a crowdsourcing campaign, I’d rather it be within the blog community.

Kelly (she knows nothing of this) has been so gracious in letting me take her photos and she is so hard-working and uncomplaining, I’d like to help her out. She is a true animal lover, many people would not have been so generous. And her dog will probably need more medical care.

7 July

Embracing My Apple Tree

by Jon Katz
Tai Chi And Me
Tai Chi And Me

A breakthrough, I suppose in the Tai Chi-Writing Chronicles. Every week Scott Carrino and I meet, and I teach him about writing, and he teaches me Tai Chi.  Today, we went outside and stood under the beautiful old apple tree and we did Tai Chi there, and I felt the pull of the tree and it’s power.

Scott said this was the tree for me, the one I needed to embrace and meditate over. It was interesting, the pony, the donkeys and the dogs all came over near Scott and sat in and around the shadow of the old tree, it was as if they were pulled into it somehow. Even Fate lay still by the gate, watching.

Scott showed me how to make my movements center around the tree, embrace it, reflect it. I got it, I liked it a lot, it was calming and soothing. We are sticking with our lessons, we are getting somewhere.

7 July

Yellow Barn: The Unseen World

by Jon Katz
The Unseen World
The Unseen World

I’ve learned that infrared photography works best for me when I am not shooting into the sun, but with the sun behind me. The camera picks up some color, here some yellow and some green and there seems to be a “hush” around the barn, a sense of quiet reflection. There is an integrity to the camera, it shows light as it truly is, not as we would like to think it is.

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