Grief and Going On

"Enjoy Yourself --- It is Later than You Think"

It is ironic now to download the photos I took last weekend, just before learning of my friend's death. I snapped this shot of a plaque at the Peterson Rock Gardens, a kitschy private museum in Redmond, which showcases, among others, a slightly more than head-high model of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home, made out of volcanic rocks and semiprecious stones. I took a lot of shots but can't figure out how to upload them to the blog in the order I want them. Oh well, may do that later or just put the photos in an upcoming entry. It's funny how when I took this shot, I was thinking about my career, and figuring out what I want for my future. Now I see it as a reminder that life is pretty darn short and it's important not to waste a second.

Also, one of the truly beautiful and somber moments was catching the sunset at the Stonehenge WWI memorial on the north banks of the Columbia River Gorge.

Sam Hill, who built the first highway through the Gorge and also spearheaded Maryhill Museum in his "ranch house" on its north banks, built a miniature Stonehenge to honor Klickitat County servicemen killed in the first World War. Believing, as people did at that time, that the builders of Stonehenge had sacrified victims on the central "altar," Hill, a Quaker, felt that a replica would be a fitting memorial to the men sacrified "to the gods of war." The memorial is a beautifully lonely place hundreds of feet above the river and a model town Hill built. Below, I could see ships on the river, acres of flowering fruit trees, and a tiny glowing white-steepled church.