i love a good shot of feet, almost as much as i love taking photographs of hands - it all says so much. who remembers to look down, when they are walking? i do - and was teased mercilessly about taking so many photographs of my feet when i got to new zealand (granted, by then it had become almost an obsession with me and i was taking shots of my shoes and the feet inside them everywhere i went). the boots at the top are those of dear ro bruhn, who so gallantly offered to pick misty and me up, separately, at the melbourne airport and "show us around the town". little did she know just how involved escorting us and running errands would be, but ro remained a beautifully smiling trooper throughout the week. i spent my first night in melbourne at ro's and her husband steve's beautiful log cabin outside of melbourne, where the rural roads loop and twist around tall eucalyptus trees and past wide open paddocks (fields) where i was always ever hopeful i'd see another "mob" of kangaroos. the house is delightful, a welcome respite of color and warm woods, a visual feast of artwork in every nook and cranny of the house she built some 30 years ago.
the next morning we drove back down (or up, i don't know) to the airport to greet misty at 8am, and i must say that she stepped out of customs looking as if she had just boarded that overnight flight merely minutes before. how odd and wonderful it was to see her there, in an overseas country, just like we had stepped out of the swirl of artfest and port townsend, right into this bustling place! from there we drove down to the mornington pensinsula - see how gorgeous?! - to meet our dear blogging friends samm and mandy for the very first time, and spent a good part of the afternoon sifting through sand in search of beach glass, then visiting a lovely vineyard, like the best of old, old friends.
the light in australia, i discovered, is a different sort of light - golden , soft but clear - and perhaps that simply comes with the change of seasons, with autumn's afternoons that hang onto that light only briefly, sweetly, before the sun goes down behind rounded hills and everything becomes the dusty shade of velvet, of evening, of times remembered. the time here was exquisite - tender - breathtaking - magical.
the sun was warm in the sand, and warm on someone's naked feet...
misty, traci, and i will be forever grateful to these three fine women of victoria, australia; we were there in a great big city, one that was entirely unfamiliar to us, and ro, samm and mandy never failed to be there for us to run grocery errands, drive us across town, stop off to purchase fine australian wine or teaching supplies, carve out time for a coffee and tea break, carry our boxes, to mail our remnants of post items that we hadn't remembered until they were hauling us and all our monstrous gear to the airport that final morning. if ever you see their faces, the ones that softly glow like the autumn's afternoon sun, in melbourne or on mornington peninsula, gently pull them aside and tell them nina asked you to treat them to a good hot cup of tea; i'd do it myself, if only i could step across the ocean just like that.
next time? the incredible traci joins us, finally, for the retreat! xo
Typical me - I find religious symbolism everywhere. Is that an unconsciously placed cross in your new masthead? I'm sure it isn't, given your ambivalence vis-a-vis religious iconography, but I just had to toss it out there as a virtual poke in the ribs. :-)
Posted by: Brian | June 11, 2008 at 03:10 PM
I know that light ....
Posted by: Hashi | June 11, 2008 at 03:44 PM
so beautiful... i'll have to get there one day...
Posted by: natalya | June 11, 2008 at 07:20 PM
And so, your words and images enhance my adopted homeland. But..................that mosaic under your feet, oh, that caught my eye. It is very good work, where was it Nina?
Posted by: herhimnbryn | June 11, 2008 at 07:28 PM
how wonderful to have such beautiful souls helping to make the time in oz so much more enjoyable, it was like coming home, even in a far away land.
...good times... ;-)
Posted by: m | June 11, 2008 at 07:34 PM
ohhhhhh but you are here..... you are! and a good hot cup of tea is shared in spirit, every single time xoxoxo
Posted by: samm | June 11, 2008 at 08:07 PM
What a wonderful Journey,Ro is an amazing lady with a very gentle and giving soul,so glad to got to spend some time with her
Jen
Posted by: Jen Crossley | June 11, 2008 at 08:10 PM
Love, love, love the shot of the path beside the wall...tranquility personified. And oh, to be on a beach with just myself and my lovies! I actully found one of those right here in good old NC a few years back, believe it or not, and it was wonderful...just me, my kids the sky and the ocean. (sigh)....
Posted by: Tina in McLeansville | June 11, 2008 at 08:26 PM
An absolute joy to scroll through your blog and get caught up - it's been much too long since I've visted. I'm always so inspired when I come here and admire everything you do. I hope you're having a lovely week.
All my best,
Holly
Posted by: Holly | June 11, 2008 at 11:26 PM
The pleasure was all mine, and I'd love to share another cuppa with you. Thanks so much for coming into our lives, I know I learnt an awful lot from you, Misty and Traci over the three days of the retreat, and I had a great time showing you around our town. It's still hard to believe it's been and gone so quickly. I look forward to the next time. I loved the trip to the supermarket with the three of you, not for the food you bought but to see what Traci had in her basket to create art with. I thought I bought things for odd reasons but it seems I'm not the only one.
Ro
xo
Posted by: robruhn | June 12, 2008 at 07:00 AM
Nina, love the shot of the girls fossicking among the flotsam and treasures washed up on the shore. I love to do this almost more than anything. What a neat way to see the world, meet wonderful people and create new memories and inspiration.
Posted by: rachelle | June 12, 2008 at 08:38 AM
What you saw was amazing. Your images are gorgeous. Your words are evocative and dreamy.... I hover between longing to have been there, and feeling that I was.......
Posted by: Vicki in MIchigan | June 12, 2008 at 09:47 AM
Oh my goodness, but I love the pictures of the feet too. And all those other types of photos that tell a story without being obvious. I also love pictures of hands for the same reason. It's like God in the details... so is the story and you have captured, and pictured, it so beautifully. Thank you for sharing your adventures. God Bless!
Posted by: Donna Roberts | June 12, 2008 at 10:22 AM
Nina,
How lovely to read of your travels. So wishing I could have been there. I love the "Oh the places I have been" piece. Really like the way you attached the beach glass to the flat piece. For you, a poem...
Your Feet
When I cannot look at your face
I look at your feet.
Your feet of arched bone,
your hard little feet.
I know that they support you,
and that your sweet weight
rises upon them.
Your waist and your breasts,
the doubled purple
of your nipples,
the sockets of your eyes
that have just flown away,
your wide fruit mouth,
your red tresses,
my little tower.
But I love your feet
only because they walked
upon the earth and upon
the wind and upon the waters,
until they found me.
Pablo Neruda
Posted by: John | June 12, 2008 at 10:30 AM