Built on hope by hand
Manifesting love and dreams
Story etched in stone
Act 1 - If you’re patient, you may find clues.
One of my favorite aspects of photography is its encouragement to slow down. Slow down to compose the best picture - changing locations, vantage points or lenses. Slow down to survey surroundings - the land, wildlife and artifacts. Slow down to appreciate the geology and history of a place - what forces formed the terrain, who lived here before, who lives here now?
Act 2 - If you’re patient, you may find perspective.
Site spotting and composition are a joy to learn, and there are many resources available to facilitate acquiring these skills. Similarly for geology and history, and park systems generally do a great job providing this information online or in place via park signage. Thank you park service!
Act 3 - If you’re patient, you may find yourself.
I’ve hiked Halfway Prairie Wildlife Area once before, in the winter. I wanted to experience this site in summer and on a hot, muggy August evening, I did just that. This sweet, small park is home to the Matz Farmstead Ruins, built in 1909 and burned in 1948. It still stands. I slowed down, summoned my patience and got curious. Why did this family leave their home countries? Why did they homestead here? Were they happy here? I’m not related to the Matz family, however some of my relatives immigrated to the US around the same time, so I feel a kinship with the history and legacy of this family. In these ruins, I’ve found a piece of myself.