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FronteraLands
It’s always a good thing to get out and enjoy the beauty that’s around you – makes you appreciate life more, if you know what I mean. |
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FronteraLands
It’s always a good thing to get out and enjoy the beauty that’s around you – makes you appreciate life more, if you know what I mean. |
The sentinels stand guard along the western edge of Saguaro Nat’l Park to the west of Tucson
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Taken during our rare winter snowstorms. You can see Wearver’s Needle to the right of the main grouping of mountains.
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I took this off my patio a few months ago. I’m blessed to have such a nice view when the sky cooperates.
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I remember when you first shared this in the cafe. It is just as beautiful as I remembered it.
if I recall, this was the cause of the Holy Chihuahua Invocation 😉
Truly stunning!!! I have no words…
My great, great, great, great grandmother rests in peace under the careful watch of Picketpost Mountain in Arizona. She was buried around the time statehood was declared for this region.
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This is a wonderful picture. I’m fascinated by the pipes around the grave. Are they there for protection or decoration or some entirely different reason?
I noticed her name (well, all of it that could be seen) — are named for her?
to my late grandfather, they were sunk in the 40s and were supposed to be cut level and chain added but time escaped them and they just stayed that way. The uniqueness gives it character so we wouldn’t dare cut them now.
I am named after her, along with four previous generations. I made a visit to her grave on my birthday to contemplate a hard year. It was very peaceful, the graveyard is about a ten minute drive away from my parents’ house out in the middle of the desert. Mattie Earp’s grave is about 50 yards from there along with a score of other aged markers.
I’m glad they never got around to making them ‘perfect’ — I think the way they are makes a wonderful symbol of paradoxical nature of a person’s life — structured and yet unruly.
It looks like a wonderful place to do some meditation (at least early in the morning before the heat is up).
Great picture, and I like the story about the pipes. Nice to know that time has been escaping people for generations…
my great, great grandfather was the blacksmith in the town where the family settled – apparently there were too many horses to shoe and procrastination got the best of him on this particular project. Glad to know I’m a loyal follower of his footsteps (the procr. not the blacksmith) 😉
This is such a touching image, Manny. And to be able to visit, within a short drive, the place where your family has been for so many generations, is cool. I could not tell you the names or stories of anyone further back than my great grandparents.
the history pretty much stops with her in this particular family line but it is nice to be able to visit her when I need to return to an era of quiet and contemplation. It is by far my favorite Thinking Place.
I love this picture. I like the balance between her grave and the hill (butte?) in the back and the dusty desert landscape in between. We are dust and will return to dust.
And another thing I like about it is how the viewer has no idea if there are other graves near hers or not. For all we know it is just hers. That means that all of our interest and respect is ONLY on her and the land. Contemplating life and death and specifically her life and death. I like that.
Thanks for sharing this.
had to work the Ash Wednesday stuff in there, eh? I love it 🙂
Most of the ‘graves’ are just piles of rock now, there are a few headstones remaining, but aside from Mattie Earp, hers is the only one that resembles something that you’d find in a still-functioning cemetery. It truly is like walking into the past. I’m glad I got to share a glimpse of it with you all.
The mountain in the background is an ancient volcanic neck. The area is breathtaking within the valley with rock formations all around. No Ritz nearby, but you’re always welcome to visit. 🙂
Thanks Manny for including this picture-on it’s own it is strangely compelling but to read your answers to the comments makes it ‘come alive’ as it were -thanks again for sharing this photo and the story behind it.
i’m glad you enjoyed. In my family we’re big on honoring our ancestry, most of which is oral history, so I’ve been trying to work with my grandmother and others to get it down in writing as well as in photos. Thanks for your kind words. paz
That sounds like a wonderful idea Manny and I imagine very rewarding for you also. It is so easy to lose family history yet family history can be an unending source of fascination and amazement. And you are making family history right now with your blog and activism in politics/human rights.
What a stunning resting place. The pipes remind me of organ pipes in a cathedral. I wonder though, when the desert wind blows across thier mouths, do they sing? :o)
I haven’t heard them sing before, but your descriptive words just gave me a shot of inspiration for one of the sections in my novel outline. Thanks!
That area is full of quiet Peace, I’m glad to have it available as a refuge from the crazy world.
Hola,
and you’re welcome. Anything I can do to secure my future as an inspirational contributor :o)
Thank you for honoring us with this picture of your grandmother’s resting place. It is so lovely – the ring of nopal and other cactus must look spectacular in the blooming spring. Spare, and full of remembrance at anytime with the sentinel of the mountain nearby.
It also gives me a sense of your past, and a part of what has made you the person you are today. It is an honor to see those things, at such a distance.
we got alot of rain this year (alot for us anyways) so everything bloomed nicely in the spring. The cholla have bright purple blooms, I’ll see if I can catch them in their prickly glory next year. paz
The final resting place of Cecilia “Mattie” Blaylock-Earp, who was married to Wyatt Earp – infamous lawman of the Wild Wild West era. She died of an opium overdose and was always seen as a footnote to her husband’s story. This marker helps vindicate her memory.
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Taken during my drive home from a long day of work. Pay no attention to the metal impostor near the first palm 😉
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All the sunset shots are gorgeous but I really like this one (metal intruder notwithstanding).
This is a beautiful photo, Manny. I love the colors.
I was in a pretty crappy mood that day and was driving home and looked out my window to see that stunning view. It was an instant lift of spirits and luckily I had my camera with me.
A nice scenic drive to the west of Tucson. It leads to Avra Valley where you can find the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and Old Tucson Studioes where many western films were produced.
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The monsoons bring rain to the tierra and beauty to our skies as the sun sets in the West.
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It’s amazing how quickly the sky changes when the breeze blows through.
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My grandfather’s family began its livelihood in a shack that no longer stands, but its foundation is within a few yards of the windmill and cattle grounds that are still used today.
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Great shot and what a backyard.
it’s in a valley of mountains, someday I’ll take a full panoramic view. Quite breathtaking and would be considered paradise if it wasn’t so damn hot during the summer.
Great set of pictures. The sunset shots are wonderful. I loved the starkness of the saguaros in the national park.
We get treated to nice sunsets here, one of the perks of having mountain ranges all around the city. Glad you like them, now I’m off to catch up on all the other diaries. The ones I’ve seen so far have been breathtaking.
Manny the sunsets are amazing. And your gentle spirit comes through in your photos. Beautiful!
I wish I would’ve had more time over the past couple of weeks to take pix, but chaos ensued. Thanks to you and the rest of the fair crew for organizing another successful showcase of art.
You have created a stunning, moving sense of place. Thanks for sharing.
The desert is such a diverse place, as you know, so I’m glad I was able to share some of it with everyone. I’ll have to let you know the next time I go exploring in your part of the region.
Wonderful. Looking forward to it.
Beautiful sunsets you have there.
Beautiful pics Manny. Brings a lot of memories of my eight years in Tucson to mind. Working at the airport that whole time we would sit out on the ramp and watch the sunsets, especially during monsoon season. They were spectacular, as your pictures prove. Nice work!
The airport is a great place to catch the sunsets. We had a decent monsoon this summer so there was plenty of fire in the sky at the end of the day.
How was your trip?!?!?
My trip was….ummmmmmmmm….really great and centering. I am just home since late last evening so still in calm and mellow mode. I want to try and stay there for as long as possible. I had an interesting offer to go into business with a friend over there. I am considering it but really need to weigh out alot of things first. Will keep you posted as more is revealed to me from the Universe. Thanks for answering.
Thanks for the peek at the southwest from one who has not yet had the opportunity to go there in person. My grandparents went out to the desert every summer for many years (1930’s and 40’s)around Phoenix and stayed in a little camping trailer with no A/C. I have a painting he did of a dam around there someplace, but have no clue exactly where it might be. Maybe someday, I’ll have a chance to explore in that direction.
I’m the documenter of ancestral graves in my family and have located and photographed quite a few stones. The oldest I have found are of my great, great, great grandparents.
The sunset photos are just awesome!
perhaps it was Roosevelt Dam? It’s not too far from the Phx metro area and holds back a good chunk of the water reserves for the city.
Very cool about the gravesite documentation. I’m really enjoying the research that I’ve started on my roots. It’s good to know where you come from, imo.
Thanks for lookin at my point and click photos! paz
Nope, not Roosevelt. Its way too big. This is a little low head dam with a pond or river. I’ll see if I can get a decent photo of the painting sometime and send it your way just for fun.
Meanwhile, this is my grandpa’s self portrait, done around the same period.
paz amigo
so much character that can only be captured by the person themself. Thanks for sharing that! Wow
This is a historical tour into someones life & times that usually is not shared. Thanks for letting me know more about one of the faceless warriors of the green tribe.
Grandpa was the first of his side of the family to leave the farm and attend college. He eventually earned a PhD in education and spent his live teaching (including his lucky grandkids).
…spent his life… Oh, he wouldn’t be pleased with my spelling this morning;-)
your offerings too, Knuckle. Your unedited shots are great but I enjoy your artistry in the composites. paz