The Grand Finale: 30 Days of June

This collection of photos for the last week of June is inspired by the lost arts. With all the AI and other digital advances coming to make our lives an “easier” place I was reminded throughout these 30 Days of June how my world can still be appreciated without this intrusion. For example, this photo was inspired by a very real mushroom we discovered on a very real hike, outside.

In the Real World.

And I spent time appreciating the craftsmanship of a quilt collection at a clients house that uses an advanced embroidery setting but requires human touch to perfect it. An appropriate collaboration between tech and artist.

Then there is the simplicity of a “good shot.” Just a photo that takes advantage of the day that I was driving through. No filters, no corrections or embellishments. The image is a simple reminder of humanity, of life and loved ones and that chapters inevitably come to a close…

…structures come down while some foundations were made to stand.

The amazing craftsmanship that created this silo remains. The beautiful color of these clay tiles that were hand-made and executed before we had “all the answers.”

And the little reminders that nature itself needs no improvement, no tech. Little beaks built a moss nest with care to hold its most precious cargo. Every year there tends to be a nest picture as part of 30 Days. Which represents the beginning.

The beginning of new life.

The beginning of the growing season.

The beginning of summer… that even at June’s end is still only starting.

Starting and ending…the grand final of my 30 Days of June.

These last images are of days coming to a close.

An Eagle looks out over a superstore parking lot days before the 250th birthday of America.

Rolling storms brought lavender rain to the horizon as the sun tried to escape.

And my very best friend on this June journey: The Moon.

The Strawberry Moon.

Rising pink in the sky as the fireflies glittered in the grass.

This is how I’d like to say goodbye, as much as it breaks my heart to move onto July.

June has been everything I could have asked for- birthday parties, car shows, sunsets, moonlit walks…I wish I could start the month all over again. But alas! This is real life- and as we live in it we accept the terms. Nothing lasts forever.

The best we can hope for is to get away from our screens for a little while, see some amazing mushrooms and build something with our hands that could still be around in 100 (or 250!) years, whether it’s a stone foundation or a passed down family heirloom, or just a legacy of love…

That’s what we all have if we choose to embrace it-

A legacy of love,

Of being an actual person experiencing this weird and (very real) beautiful world.

That is something AI cannot make-believe for us.

See ya later June- catcha next year!