Today is my friend’s 49th birthday. I think he’s pretty spectacular and wanted to make sure he knew it. I really suck at presents. I can never seem to find something that’s “just right”. Or “just right AND something I can afford”. …
In a post somewhere else – I said I wanted to do 49 nice things for him. Really, it turned out to be 10 little gifts (listed first), and 39 things I wanted him to know that I’ve noticed/admired about him.
The gifts:
Sent before his b’day: “With Hidden Noise: Photographs by John Menapace”!!!
An early morning e-wish
A post somewhere else for all his on-line friends to wish him a spectacular day
A birthday phone call (which is only a big deal because of how much I hate to talk on the phone)
Four iTune songs (when I can figure out how to make them GIFTS and not MUSIC FOR ME) *sigh*
“Oh What a Beautiful Morning” from Ray Charles Sings, Basie Swings
“Just my Imagination” Dianne Reeves
“Autumn Leaves” Miles Davis & Cannonball Adderley
“The Look of Love” by Diana Krall (thank you CWEsq for pointing this video out to me)
This post
The following 39 thing are list of what and why I admire you:
Your strength - to take control of your life and reshape it for the healthiest of outcomes
Your dedication to your children
Rearranging your professional life when you became a single parent, so you were available for your children
Putting your anger and fear aside last summer when your oldest son needed you
Your obvious love and enjoyment of your parents; which led to …
Giving up your nice aisle seat on the way home from the UK so an elderly gentleman could sit next to his wife.
The compassion and sensitivity you showed when you shared/wrote that story (I’d post it here for everyone to see, but I think you’d kill me)
Your tenaciousness to stick with photography and learn all you can, even when you get rejection letters
Welcoming your daughter home after she graduated from college – and helping her take the next step, while standing firm with how you will and won’t help
Your beautiful designs
You’re pride in your oldest son’s accomplishments and facing his responsibilities
Supporting other artists (Zoe Strauss) with your time and energy
How proud you are of your youngest son who’s making his own way, difficult for a #3
The way you appreciate your clients
Your patience with me (especially when I showed my ugly side)
Your ethics when it comes to environmentalism in your everyday life
Your willingness (bravery) to tell me the truth when I ask for your opinion
Your eye for color in your photos and your over all aesthetic principles
The joy you capture in your human portraits (especially photos of children)
The way you use parallel lines in you pictures – and that you explained this to me!
Discussing art with me and sharing your viewpoint
The way you interact with young children when you capture those spur-of-the-moment-un-posed pictures
Your love of good food
The way you encourage me with my writing and taking classes
Your enthusiasm for going to new places
Your willingness to try new things
How you share your gained creative and technical knowledge with others (re: Dilly and McB)
How you’ve figured out what’s important in life, and what isn’t, and pursued the important things
How great you were with our friends young children when we were in the UK
Your generous spirit
Your (almost) life-long friendship with Randy
The way your zest for life and attention to details show up in your art and your actions
The honest way you portray the effect of stark living conditions in your photographs
Your desire to be a chronicler with your photographs
The sensitive way you shoot troubling photos (the roadside memorials)
The enjoyment you took in explaining “Cheese wit” in Amsterdam!
Your bravery for standing in line to get bus and train tickets in foreign cities
Matching your design philosophy to your spiritual philosophy which I think is the strength of your designs
Always wanting to know “the story” of the things and the people you photograph
There are many more things I could write about - in fact, I guess it would be just quicker to list what ISN'T wonderful about you.
....
Yep. Can't think of one thing.
So once again, Happy Birthday, CHP.
<3
Mitter
4 comments:
totally speechless, but amazed and appreciative, and I will comment further tomorrow.... (wow).
what a wonderful tribute to a friend.
See...I knew it...Superman DOES exist! Happy Birthday CHP!! Make it a great one! :o)
It is a wonderful tribute, beautifully and eloquently written (of course!).
I'm still stunned by it.....
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