Recently returned from our Maine vacation with some photos, and as many of you know, Acadia National Park, specifically, is one of my favorite places on earth. A mélange of Maine images I call it. I’ve always loved the word mélange – its meaning and especially its sound. Although it’s kind of a pretentious word, I think it fits pretty well here. Comes from the Old French meaning “to mix.” And the connotation is a “mixture of disparate components,” according to Wikipedia. My Maine collection of images is a bit of a jumble, a mixed bag if you will.
The first image above, Northeast Harbor Bows, is a good example. With its muted, fog shrouded subject of working boats, it is not the usual eye-popping exhibition of Fall colors in Maine – though I have to say this year the leaves did put on one of the best shows we’ve seen in our thirty plus years of visiting. If there is a central theme to this image collection though, it might be oldness, or timelessness, or at least constancy. These crafts appeared well worn, long serving and stalwart.
The rest of the collection can be seen by clicking the link below. There are a few shots of Maine’s glorious October color. Another of the special late afternoon light in Southwest Harbor near the wonderfully restored old farmhouse where we stayed (see the shot of the weather worn shingles and porch planter). Those Mason Jar lights with water worn sea glass surprised us as the kitchen chandelier. And of course there’s an ageless mountain view, and a waves-on-craggy coast capture that’s persisted for millennia. Maybe my favorite image is Mélange, a close-up, depicting Nature’s autumn stage of sure and steady recycling. All timeless, all Maine, all peaceful and reassuring.