food for eyes

 1. Untitled, 2. good morning, 3. Back to Bali, 4. Untitled, 5. Owl drawing on book edge, 6. les oiseaux., 7. cheer up, buttercup, 8. К, 9. Untitled

Perhaps because this stubbornly grey sky is muting even the brightness of azaleas and rhododendrons, my eye is desperate for bursts of colour. Out of the window, the green is dulled and uniform with only the few yellow stream-side iris that remain unbattered by rain and the last buttercups dotted through the grass like little lights of cheer. The lack of colour and sun is wearying somehow: my head feels woolly and unstimulated.

So when colour comes, it jolts me. The other day, a dull delivery was suddenly made magical by the marigold zest of the delivery man's turban. My eyes drank in the solar purity of the tone against the steel grey of his beard and I may have drawn out the conversation slightly too long. As we talked, I wrestled with shy reserve when all I wanted to do was catch that colour with my camera. Shyness won and I reluctantly watched him walk away, my eyes pursuing the glowing orange all the way down the track. Perhaps it's better kept as a memory.  

Instead, I've gathered together a few favourite images from other flickr feeds. May your eyes be full of colour today.

Comments

[Lisa @celebrate CREATIVITY]

Hi Kate, nice selections on your favorite images.

Lisa

[Denise | Chez Danisse]

Perhaps you could keep your camera near the door so the next time he visits you are able to sneak a shot of him walking away.

[little house]

Denise, the perverse thing is that he was delivering my first (very basic) phone with an integral camera... I'm in a funny space at the moment, wondering whether my instinct to reach for a camera isn't draining away the capacity to look, think and remember.

[Monica]

i understand yes (and such delightful captures), right now, i'm at the opposite place, finding a kindred connection to simplicity and grey.

[Rachael | The Slow-Cooked Sentence]

I, too, have wondered whether the camera is a crutch for language laziness, and briefly tried blogging without images, but felt that something was missing. Perhaps this a weakness of blogs, with their penchant for short, visually stimulating pieces? With that said, I confess I liked your word-picture of the man with the yellow turban because it included your own interesting thoughts.

P.S. My first comment got lost out in the ether somewhere (another downside to the 'net!), so I hope this will go through!

[little house]

Monica, your calm acceptance and appreciation shows me a graceful way to embrace this sky - thank you.

Rachael, I have also had my own response to you disappear (where? with swim trunks and keys in our house). I do love to see photos on posts as they offer another, or complementary, perspective. I just need to achieve a little internal balance between my need to capture and sometimes just to look and remember.

[Anna]

Loved that image of your postman - it was almost more beautiful for having been fleeting and of course your writing is as luscious as can be.