Monthly Archives: January 2021

 

Yesterday I completed the task of reviewing over 56,000 slides, or 5,600 pages with 20 slides per page.  I trashed 198 lbs,, which is 39,600 images and kept 16,500 slides!  In the week it took to go through all these imagews I relived the first 40 years of my career and it was unbelievable!  I found a lot wonderful images from the past like the young Jack Graham above!!!!!

 

 

How about the wonderful image of a young Wesley and Catherine, how I miss him, and how much I love her!

 

 

How my beautiful bride gets better looking every year, and every year I wonder more and more how on earth I got her to marry me!?

 

 

I also found one of my favorite travel shots from a trip Sherelene and I did to Mexico some years ago!

 

 

This one goes way back, that’s my oldest son Scott, imthe red shiort,  playing in what someday would be our front yard as they were building our home in Corbin, where we have now lived for 42 years!

 

 

One of my fvorite photos of all time of Catherine holding our new puppy, B.J. named after singer B.J. Thomas, a dear friend of Sherelene’s mine!

 

 

Lastly a shot of Wes and I in the field together, God has blessed me with a wonderful life nand has prepared and promised an incredible next life for me too!  Thank you Lord!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

 

 

Want to have some fun?  Read Goldilocks and Three Bears to a bear cub, they’ll  love it!!!

 

 

How does this settle who is right on the myriad of political disagreements we have with one another???!!!  Simple, once you have admitted you are a sinner and asked with true repentance, (sincere regret and remorse), He through the Word and the Holy Spirit will lead you into all truth.  It starts with self examination, turning to Him for forgiveness, and then the offering of Grace, (unmerited favor), to your fellow man.

 

 

We can’t go on like this, filled with hate, resentment, unforgiveness, and hostility toward one another.  Any voice that tells you, other wise is leading you astray. Letting those emotions rule us will only lead to terrible things.

 

 

I found another sign that, while not sophisitcated and pristine, it speaks the most powerful truth, that we all need to hear and act upon!  As we are just past the Chrismtas Season, may we allow God to change our hearts, and may we let Him bring Peace on Earth and Good Will to Men.  I’m ready for His better way!

 

 

 

 

I pray that you will ask God to reveal to you His truth, the only truth that matters.

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

Today I started the process of looking through 35,000 color transparencies, (1,750 pages, 20 slide each), to prepare to throw away the vast majority!  This represents the first 41 years of my life as a photographer. The photograph above represents about of 15% of the slides to be sorted!!!  I thought it would be approriate to place my first serious camera, a Nikon Nikkormat FTN on top of the first pile!

 

Why am I throwing way nearly 35,000 color slides?  With the exception of family and friends images of which there are probably around a thousand, the rest were all shot long before I matured as a shooter and increaed my skills and vision.  In short compared to what I have shot since the digital age began, the last 18 years, these are far inferior!  Secondly, I will turn 75 in early Februay and while I feel good today, at this age, the clock is ticking.  I simply don’t want my family to have to deal with  all this when I go to be with the Lord!  I also have a massive collection of photography books that I acquired over the years and in fact were my photo education, those are being donated to Liberty University along with a bunch of photo equipment that I rarely use anymore, but that the students of Tim Issacson’s classes may get some good use from!

 

I am sitting at my light table and going through them page by page and pulling any I might want to scan in the future and the images of family and friends. It has been a  bitter sweet process as memories of many great trips all around the world have spilled out on the light table.  Africa, three trips to the Galapagos Islands, numerous trips to Canada and Alaska, over 25 visits, (each) to the major U.S. National Parks, France, and the list goes on and on.  I’ve seen a lot wonderful faces of friends together having fun out in-the-field, it has beem a great day, with several more sorting days to follow!!!

 

I’m not bragging, I’m actually praising God for the incredible life He has blessed me to live! So many great memories , so many great friends and assoicates, and what a wonderful family.  A man could not ask for more!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim