Clouds and Sunlight

 On Sunday in the late afternoon I sent Bruce off to take pictures.  I wanted to go with him, but decided that I needed to stay home and keep going with my weeding.  I should have pulled off my gloves and gotten in the truck with him.  Not because it was a gorgeous afternoon with perfect light, but because when he got home he hurried to do some of the chores he'd put off doing so he could take off in the truck with his camera and dog.
It was getting dark, when he put in the t-posts with the line driver to make a temporary enclosure for the geese.  The last post bounced out of the line driver and gashed his left cheek.  We got back from the Modesto ER at midnight.  Bruce now has ten stitches along a horribly jagged wound, glasses with a gouge straight up one lens (thank God he was wearing them) and a purple bruise under his eye.  He was lucky it hadn't ended worse than it did.  We were stupid to work in the dark pounding stakes into shale.

A fine old windmill

The patchwork road

Bruce stayed home today but I went to school. With every mile I drove down the road,  I felt worse and worse about leaving him.  By the time I reached school, I was near tears and my teaching partner told me I needed to go home to be with my husband.  The secretary agreed and by eleven o'clock the sub walked in and took over,  and I drove back up into the hills to Frogpond.

Bruce was doing fine on his own but he was as happy to see me as I was to be back with him.  He then took a very long nap and I did stuff around the house.

Towards evening I asked him if he was up for another photography jaunt -- this time with me along.  He's always ready to take pictures and Murphy's always ready for a ride in the truck, so off we went.

Curious ranch horses coming over to say hi

These pictures are the ones I took this afternoon with my little Canon camera.  Bruce took his with his much fancier one.

The sky was stunning, with billowy grey clouds trying to hold back streams of sunlight.  It was a tug-o-war between the two.

Abandoned mine

This area is called Salt Springs and is just north of our house -- actually only one valley away.  Yet it feels so much more remote and distant.  Time seems to have stood still at Salt Springs.  As we drove, Bruce became more animated and relaxed.  Even with the frightful gash on his cheek, he was smiling and happy.  So was I.


I'm grateful that I took the trip with him today that I'd put off the day before.

Murphy leading the way

Down through the trees stretches the Great Central Valley and the Coast Range

Tomorrow he'll be going to work again and so will I.  It was good to have this stolen afternoon together.  Of course, I wish with all my heart that his poor cheek hadn't had to be lacerated to have this come about.


Life can't be all chores.  Sometimes you just have to put them all aside and head off towards sunlight and clouds.  I do believe I've grown a little wiser.  I hope it sticks!