Scenes From a Parade

One small photographic project which I hope to complete this Christmas season is to do a set of photos with the theme, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas".  The photos will try to capture the common routines and experiences associated with the preparations people make to celebrate Christmas.

This past weekend I photographed the Parks Lighted Christmas Parade as part of a community service activity for our local photography club.  The photo club rents space in the village hall for our meetings, and in return, we like to extend a courtesy to them for housing us.  

Collecting photos from this Christmas parade seemed to coincide with the plans for my project.  Plus, the experience had the potential to inject some Christmas spirit into a guy who can get a bit cynical regarding many of the Christmas "traditions" our society promotes.

Before photographing the parade, I photographed a nearby family who had set a fire pit and some camp chairs on their front lawn to warm themselves in anticipation of the parade.  I asked to take their photo and they welcomed me by offering some hot cider.  The kids were playing and eating toasted marshmallows while the adults visited with one another laughing and simply enjoying each other.  It was my favorite photo and experience of this night. Their attitude seemed to reflect the true spirit of the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons. 

Soon I began photographing the floats sponsored by the scouts, civic groups, local politicians, and various retail businesses.  Then came every police, fire, and maintenance vehicle the village owns.  If a string of lights could be affixed to it, it qualified as parade worthy.  

Midway through the parade an unadorned sewer services truck appeared as if it were a harbinger to all those who are hosting large Thanksgiving dinners.  It's foreboding presence reminded me of the scene from the movie "Christmas Vacation" when crazy Uncle Eddie and all his family suddenly arrive in a rusty RV during the celebritory lighting of the Griswold's family home. 

Like frames in a movie, the ever passing parade continued featuring dancing snowmen, reindeers, and elves tossing handfuls of candy to the children. Then the high school marching band strutted by playing a holiday medley which put to rest all those thoughts of potential sewage problems during the Thanksgiving feast.  

As normalcy was returning, out of the darkness appeared the coroner's van featuring a huge lighted wreath and bow adorning its front and holiday lights twinkling along its sides.  Perhaps its placement in the parade was intended to signal the parade was ending soon and the big guy in the sleigh (not the big guy carrying the sycthe) would soon appear.  I could only imagine what may have happened if the coroner was needed immediately to make a death confirmation.

As we approach Thanksgiving and the Christmas season, the scenes from this parade present a picture of the joy, bewilderment, and saddness that accompanies the holidays.  My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving for its emphasis on gratitude and simplicity.  I wonder if we enjoy Christmas more because Thanksgiving transforms our hearts and minds to focus on what we have rather than on what we will get?  It's only when we can recognize our own abundance that we can respond with grace and generosity toward others.  Happy Thanksgiving!

         

Remembering Our Veterans

Since today, November 11th, is Veteran's Day, I selected my favorite US Flag photo to honor our veterans. This flag is displayed on the side of a large, repurposed industrial building that stands along the banks of the Rock River.  The flag is a five ton metal sculpture painted with vibrant reds, whites, and blues and is composed of various mechanical parts and hand tools which were artfully assembled and welded together.  The parts and tools were scavenged from the building on which it hangs, a former paper company.  I included the parked cars in the photo to give the viewer a concept of how large this flag (18x36 ft) is compared to its surroundings.

One of the reasons this flag appeals to me is its composition and symbolic statement.  It is distinctly middle class/blue collar in its presentation and construction.  The strength of America is in the welding of these many dissimilar parts to create a common message for future generations and to serve as a reminder to us that the freedom we enjoy today was paid for by those who came before us many who were different from us. We stand gratefully on the shoulders of the veterans and others who walked through darkness.  

Having just concluded one of the ugliest and most divisive elections ever, we need to open our minds to the message of this flag and rediscover together how to artfully and thoughtfully assemble the many dissimilar parts once more. 

 

 "Operator, Can You Help 
   Me Place This Call?"

  If you remember life before cell phones, the sight of a payphone will likely evoke a response and you may even hear the plaintive voice of Jim Croce croon the opening line of "Operator" which was selected as the title for this week's blog.  This relic from the past was encountered while entering a diner this past weekend.  The sight of it aroused my consciousness in the same way as if a glass of ice water was thrown into my face. 

It stirred forgotten memories and emotions surrounding events long forgotten during my high school and college days.  A flood of similar memories flashed back to those who were dining with me that morning.  As we shared our favorite payphone memories, my high school and college aged granddaughters listened with a mix of astonishment and amusement.  They were not phased by this relic and our lively  breakfast conversation reinforced their viewpoint that their parents and grandparents are as ancient as they thought.

I took the photo with my cell phone and converted it to black and white as the wall colors were garish.  For me, memories seem to be best presented in black and white although their substance is really rather gray and faded courtesy of the passing years. The stark contrast of the blacks and whites seemed to capture the shock that this ghost from the past stirred within me when it appeared so unexpectedly.  The window light and shadows organically created an asymmetrical vignette which seemed to add to the distorted feeling of seeing the past and the present collide within this small diner entry.  

The primary function of a payphone is to communicate with someone. Payphones and cameras share that common purpose.  Both primarily initiate one way communication but hold limited value for receiving incoming messages.  (unless you were a bookie)  Upon leaving the diner, I thought about removing the receiver and letting it just dangle before taking a second photo.  I didn't do that because the change would have failed to describe my feelings upon seeing this old payphone and also altered my message to the viewer. To paraphrase the closing line from Croce's 1970s hit single, " but it just wasn't real, and that's not the way it feels."