A Winter's Dusk ...

"In every winter's heart
there is a quivering spring,
And behind the veil of each
night there is a smiling dawn."
                             ~ Kahlil Gibran
                                         ~ 1883-1931 

A winter's dusk paints itself around the
Springhouse at Trexler Memorial Park,
Allentown, Pennsylvania, one of my very
favorite places to be and to photograph.

I captured this high contrast monochrome shot 
a few days after the historic January 
Blizzard of 2016. In a winter shorn of snow until
the blizzard, the storm plonked 31 inches of snow
on Allentown in a 24 hour period.

This log cabin was part of Springhouse, the summer home of General Harry C. Trexler (1854-1933), an American industrialist who built a business empire in Allentown. The park is his namesake.

    

Blanketing Bogert's Bridge ...

"Stillness is the flower of winter,
all hope waits beneath a blanket of white."
                                     ~ Author Unknown

Snow blankets the historic Bogert's Covered Bridge, on which sunset shadows dance
on a still January day in Lehigh Parkway,
Allentown, Pennsylvania.

I stood knee deep in snow taking this shot a
few days after the historic Blizzard of 2016, 
the peaceful scene in stark contrast to 
the recent storm.

In a winter shorn of snow until the blizzard,
the storm plonked  31 inches of snow on
Allentown in a 24 hour period.

Bogert’s Covered Bridge spans 145 feet over the Little Lehigh Creek in Lehigh Parkway.

 Built in 1841, it’s history traces back to the mid-1700s when the Bogert family moved into a log cabin next to the future site of the bridge. It is the oldest covered bridge in Lehigh County and among the oldest in the country. It is open only to pedestrian and bicycle traffic, as well as the occasional rider on horseback.

 Bogert’s  Covered Bridge is a wooden Burr Truss bridge with vertical plank siding and a gable roof. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

The Colors Of Warmth ...

"Life is art, live yours in color."
                   ~ Author Unknown

Brightly colored mini-marshmallows do
a happy dance as they swirl in a cup of
hot cocoa, warming up a cold
winter's day.  

Wisp Of A Summer Video ...

"Thee I Love," the beautiful theme from the wonderful 1956 film "Friendly Persuasion" performed by Norman Percival and His Orchestra, captures the spirit of summer showcased in my original photos.

My greatest joy as a photographer is harmonizing
my favorite original photos to music to create a
lingering snapshot of the season. Enjoy!

Also on my YouTube channel at
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRn2CBhEqL0

Snow Mates...

"Faith is the bird that feels the light
when the dawn is still dark."
                                 ~ Rabindranath Tagore
                                        ~ 1861-1941

Beautiful North American Male Cardinal
is joined by a cute female house finch
as sunlight filters through the branches
surrounding their perch after a fresh
March snowfall at Trexler Memorial Park,
Allentown, Pennsylvania.    

A River Runs Through It ...

"But memory is an autumn leaf that
murmurs a while in the wind
and then is heard no more."
                   ~ Khalil Gibran
                                 ~ 1883-1931

Leaves frame the autumn colors cascading across the Pequest River as it flows through the middle of town in Belvidere, New Jersey on a perfect Indian Summer day in November.

Belvidere, one of my very favorite places,
is a charming, Victorian town located on the
banks of the Pequest and Delaware Rivers.   

The Fruits Of Spring ...

"In all things of nature, there is something of the marvelous."
                                             ~ Aristotle
                                                    ~ 385-322 B.C.

My favorite white-tailed deer doe enjoys an apple
in the early spring, painting a sweet sight as 
sunset draws near in the park.

I've been blessed to photograph this doe and her fawns
since 2012, and it's a true joy to me personally and
as a photographer.  

 

Doe In The Spring Snow ...

"Born free, as free as the wind blows
As free as the grass grows
Born free to follow your heart ...
Live free and beauty surrounds you ...
Stay free, where no walls divide you ...
Born free, and life is worth living
But only worth living
'Cause you're born free."
                               ~ "Born Free"
                  ~title song of the 1966 film
        ~Music by John Barry, Lyrics by Don Black  

Beautiful and free white-tailed deer doe 
steps spritely through the spring snow in the park
as the grass peeks through what remains of winter
during a March sunset.

I've been blessed to photograph this doe and her fawns since 2012, and it's a true joy to me personally and as a photographer.    

Strummin' Into Spring ...

"... I hitchhiked all the way down to Memphis ...
Just lookin' for a place to play,
Well, I thought my pickin' would set 'em on fire,
But nobody wanted to hire a guitar man ...

So I slept in the hobo jungles, 
Roamed a thousand miles of track,
Till I found myself in Mobile Alabama
At a club they call Big Jack's,
A little four-piece band was jammin',
So I took my guitar and I sat in,
I showed 'em what a band would sound like,
With a swingin' little guitar man.
Show 'em son ...

Guess who's leadin' that five-piece band,
Well, wouldn't ya know, it's that swingin' little guitar man."     
                                ~ "Guitar Man"
                                      ~ written by Jerry Reed
                           ~ recorded by the great Elvis Presley
                                                           ~ 1967   

This guitar, mounted on the outside wall of
Guitar Villa, Nazareth Pike, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
is strummin' into spring on a sunny day in early April,
reminding me of the great Elvis Presley singing
"Guitar Man," which he recorded in 1967.    

                                

Song Of The Early Spring ...

"...Who made the flowers to bloom in the spring
Who made the song for the robins to sing
And who hung the moon in the starry sky
Somebody bigger than you and I ..."
               ~ "Somebody Bigger Than You and I"
     written by Johnny Lange, Hy Heath & Sonny Burke
                    ~recorded by the great Elvis Presley
                                                    ~ 1967 

A robin sings its beautiful song in the early spring at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania.

This painterly capture of a sweet robin in March
epitomizes the line in my most favorite Gospel hymn, the beautiful "Somebody Bigger Than You And I," recorded by the great Elvis Presley in 1967. 

       

Bluesy Morning ...

" ... I look out my window and what do I see

I see a bird way up in a tree

I want to be free free

free - ee -ee -ee

I want to be free like the bird in the tree ..." 

                ~ "I Want To Be Free" ~

                    ~from the 1957 musical drama 
                          "Jailhouse Rock"                                           ~ recorded by the great Elvis Presley

  

Beautiful bluejay perched way up in a tree

soaks in a gorgeous sun splashed April morning

at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania. 

                                  

Winding Into Red ...

"Nothing behind me,

Everything ahead of me,

As is ever so on the road." 

                              ~ Jack Kerouac

                                                 ~ 1922-1969

                                            ~ "On The Road"

                                                                     ~ 1957 

Though shorn of snow, it's a chilly December day

as the country road winds through the historic Schlicher Covered Bridge,

North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.

What lies ahead is the beautiful rural landscape at sunset ...

and endless possibilities.

Schlicher's is an historic wooden covered bridge. It is a 108-foot-long, Burr Truss bridge that crosses the Jordan Creek and was constructed in 1882. It has vertical plank siding and a gable roof. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, and was closed for a time for needed renovations.

 

Flight Into Sunset ...

"Softly the evening came ..."

                                     ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

                                                                 ~ 1807-1882 

 

Canadian Geese fly into a fiery sunset as the evening softly

comes to Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania

on the first day of winter in December 2014.

Covered In Christmas ...

"Remembrance, like a candle, burns brightest at Christmastime."

                                                                                                              ~ Charles Dickens

                                   ~ 1812-1870 

                                                               

Festooned in Christmas lights, the historic Wehr's Covered Bridge, Orefield, Pennsylvania sparkles with the joy of Christmastime on a December evening.

Wehr’s Covered Bridge is an historic wooden covered bridge located in South Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. It is a three span, 117-foot-long, Burr Truss bridge, constructed in 1841. It has horizontal siding and a gable roof. It crosses the Jordan Creek and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The nearby Wehr’s Dam was built in 1904.

This beautiful bridge has seen travelers for 174 Christmastimes, but the true beauty is the reason and meaning of the season - the birth of Christ - which is timeless and remains the same.

Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas everyone!