A new dimension of this blog will launch tomorrow. Two new categories will appear: Ghost Ranch Images and Ghost Ranch People.
Each post will contain a picture taken (by me) at Ghost Ranch in New Mexico and an alphabetical reference. They may include a reflection on the image and/or a few notes on the context of the image. Dates will appear although they may only be a year or a month and year at first. This will become easier and more precise with better record keeping of future photographic endeavors at the ranch.
Posts will appear in general alphabetical order, starting with the letter “a” (as learned on Sesame Street) and working forward. Posts will vary between the two categories. Eventually multiple posts will appear for each letter in each category. Some will prove more of a challenge than others. All will, hopefully, testify to the power of place.
In the movie Field of Dreams, Burt Lancaster’s character, Dr. Archibald “Moonlight” Graham, reflects on the power of place. Speaking of his home in Chisholm, Minnesota, Graham says:
This is my most special place in the world, Ray. Once a place touches you like this, the wind never blows so cold again. You feel for it like it was your child.
Ghost Ranch touches me. Even as my family entered the grounds in 1993, I recognized the ranch as a place that nurtures and nourishes me. It did so then. It does so now – wherever I find myself.
I offer my photos and words as a humble homage to a play that plays an important role in my life and in the lives of so many others. For me, they serve to recall memories and process experiences and dream of what may be. I look forward to hearing if they speak to you.
See you along the Trail.
“The alphabet is too short.”
Along the Graybeard Trail 