“Weather Report”

United States
Martha’s Vineyard
Through Harold’s Lens:

Please start Martha’s Vineyard icon Carly Simon’s music first, as you are enjoying the image and lyric essay.
You will receive the full sensual experience of this story.

6:03am
My old cracked weather radio
Squawked again with static.

“Winds 14
North by Northwest
Sky cloudy
Temperature dropping
42 by 10am.

Incoming tide
Cold day fishermen
Frenzies going on
Blues & Stripers biting
Tight lines”.

Rusty, my old Jeep
Rumbled through curves
Past Vineyard Haven Harbor
Lonely boats and masts
Rocking to the rhythm of the water.

Blue smoke
Trailing Rusty’s rear pipe
Oil again.
The hell with it.

Tackle box . Rattling
Stinky cooler live slimy eels. Secure
Rod . Snug in dirty rags
Reel . Oiled skin smooth
Line. New 20 lb test.

Another cold morning
With my best buddy Jim
On the water
In his rigged fishing boat.

Bloddy Marys at 9
Jokes, puns, laughs.

Cries echo over water
“Fish on”.

From Harold’s Photographic Series on Martha’s Vineyard: “Intimacy of Island Life”

Martha’s Vineyard. “Birth Of Dawn”

United States
Martha’s Vineyard
Through Harold’s Lens:

Long before the birth of dawn
Slowly
Emerging from black.

Rising yellows
Surfacing oranges
Bursting blues.

I open my salt rusted door
Creak
Squeak
Old, trashed Jeep
Rusty’s his name.

Sling tackle box in
Sling waders in
Sling cooler in
Nestle fly rod carefully on tattered wool sweaters.

During the birth of dawn
Dew blanket
Smothers all.

Robins chirp
Their morning welcome.

Worms wiggle
Pedals unfold
Color abounds.

Soft yellow light
Pops from windows
Weathered shingled cottages.

Waves of hot coffee waft
Through dense mist.

Me
With solo beach time
With waves
With wet sand
With whipping fly rod

With enjoyment
With tranquility
With purity
With peace

With a nibble
With a bite
With a tug
With a large striped bass

After the birth of dawn
Sun shines
Shadows flow.
Island alive
Folks everywhere.

Forty pound striper
Bled out
Gutted
Fillet.

Grilled feast tonight!
Another day on my special island.

From Harold’s Photographic Series on Martha’s Vineyard: “Intimacy of Island Life”

Cambodia. “Portrait Of Pain”

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Cambodia
Through Harold’s Lens:

What does this little boy know?
Pain?
Hunger?
Sadness?

Terror?
Safety?
Loneliness?

Misery?
Ridicule?
Rejection?

Death?
Failure?
The unknown?

What does this little boy miss?
Mommy?
Daddy?
Brother?
Sister?

Friend?
Food?
Love?

Hugs?
Happiness?
Holding hands?

Silliness?
Goofiness?
Laughter?

Little boy
Stumbling
War-torn concrete jungles
Kicking stones
Kicking dust
Flicking bugs.

Cry from his deep?

One only
Speaks Cambodian
One only
Speaks English.

I’ll never know.

“Sahara Sunshine”

Morocco
Through Harold’s Lens:

Tucked
In fabric tents
In soft, sweeping sand
In towering mountains.

Beauty
Nomads
Strolling
Nature’s beach.

Wandering
Eating
Sleeping
Loving.

“Clomp. Clomp. Clomp”

Morocco
Through Harold’s Lens:

Spitting
Chewing
Burping
Groaning.

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp

Whining
Urinating
Bellowing
Moaning.

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp

Rhythmic
Slow
Slumbery
Sleepy
Camel caravan.

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp

Stretching
Red Sea
Atlantic Ocean .

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp

Dune slogging
Five hundred feet
High.

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp

Sweat pouring
Salt draining
Hottest desert in world.

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp

Frosty
Cold beer
Safari tent camp.

Soon. Soon. Soon.

The Great Sahara!

“Fly Fishing In The Mountains”

United States
Through Harold’s Lens:

Playboy!
Loaded fly rod in hand
Wandered
Hills
Valleys
Mountains.

Eight-weight
Teasing trout
Dangling bait
Chasing tail
Morning, noon and night.

Moist creeks
Wandering streams
Soft shorelines
Full backing of
Mankind.

Banks of breeding bunnies
Tools in hand
Digging
For libido of man.

Pick-up
Lay down
Set the hook
Strip the line
Unload the rod.

Guiding N.O.W.
Steinem, Friedan, Fonda
No catch
Dry fly.

Playboy Mansion dam
Runoff
Steelhead, Hog Sucker, Southern Playfish
Bridle Shiner, Cutthroat, Killifish
Sleeper, Snook, Chiselmouth
Even Logperch and Paddlefish.

Ego on top of many mountains?
Many egos wearing mountains?

A little boy with grown up toys?
Little toys with a grown up boy?

Riding rockets to the moon.

Aging fisherman
Hatched
From warm waters
April nine
Nineteen twenty six.

Eighty-eight year journey
Eternal climb up mountains of lust
Traversing curving trails
Back to warm home.

Happy Birthday Hugh!

“Help From On High”

Mexico
Through Harold’s Lens:

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You will receive the full sensual experience of this story.

Ave Maria. Schubert Opera:

Atop
Touching our Lord
Draped in cascading folds of gold
The Immaculate Conception.

Nestled below
Silently in prayer
Whispers of peace
Whispers of help
Whispers for our poor.

Draped in flowing folds of white
Sisters of the Immaculate Conception.

Wrinkled old man
Rags of threads
Rags of holes
Shuffles slowly
Cobblestones.

Soft knock
Rugged mesquite door
Rusted hinge creaks
Angelic face
Peers
From within.

Humbled old man
Twisted
Gnarled hands
Paints cross on chest
Head bows.

Aging hands of love
Quietly pass nourishment.

Whispers
Of love
Of comfort

Old old
Our sick
Our poor
Our lonely.

Amen

“Final Flourish”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

Goodnight
Little Shop of Umbrellas.

You brought me joy
You showed me a way
You let me touch and feel.

We dabbled with delicate hands
Flew through soft clouds of white
Rolled in rainbows of colors
Sat on the tip of your brush.

Your dreams
Became my dreams
My inspiration
My love of life.

My parasol of pleasure.

“Music Of The Brush”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

Strings across strings
Ave Maria
Haunts your heart.

Reeds on lips
Harlem Nocturne
Nurtures your desires.

Sticks on skins
Drum Sex
Transports you to deep dark.

Sable hair strokes colors
Mona Lisa
Invites you to explore beauty.

“One Dab”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

Inside
Little shop of umbrellas.

Artist imagines
Dreams
Fantasies
Fairy tales.

Color by color
Drop by drop
Dip by dip.

One dab
One dab at a time.

“Magical Thread”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

A Dusting of sprinkles
Smiles
Giggles
Laughter
Gusts of wind.

Mary Poppins
Floats through blue
Bound by
Mary’s Magical Thread.

“Magical Umbrella”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

In the little studio
Hands folded
Quiet
In awe.

They
Patiently watched
Patiently waited.

Magical nanny
Julie Andrews
Cockney jack-of-all-trades
Dick Van Dyke
Fun, giggling
Children.

Even Walt was there.

Artist’s dreams
Coming alive.

Fantasies
Jovial jokes
Merry-go-rounds.

Lullabies
Tea parties in mid-air.

Children
Dancing ‘round the room.

Nursery rhymes
Poems
Songs.

Cannon booms at 8:00.

Gusts of wind.

Soft clouds
Magic umbrella
Mary Poppins floats.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

Mexico. “Smatterings”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

Swaying artist
Tones
Traditional Thai repertoire
Classical.

Music
For Her soul.

Inspiration
For her heart.

Rhythm
For her body.

Gifted artist
Fans and umbrellas.
Spins her craft
Of color.

Spirits of pigments
Blowing
In the wind.

Flying leaves
Fluttering
From trees of red.

Soft sand
Whispering
Across beaches of gold.

Clouds of cotton
Floating
Through an umbrella of blue.

Art within art!

 

“Emerging Spring”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

Freshness of Spring
Warmth of Summer’s sun
Emerging from memories
Onto parasol’s roof of red.

Artist’s brush
Tipped in classic colors.

Little girl
Dancing through fields
Blooming flowers
Buttercups
Butterflies fluttering.

Embracing her love of life.

“Elegance”

Thailand
Through Harold’s Lens:

Tranquility embraced her space
Dressed in flowing green silk
Wearing a contagious smile
Delicate hands
Held each other
In tight embrace.

Tip of sable hair
Gently touched
Palettes of beauty.

Reds
Blues
Greens
Blacks
Blends.

Asian history
Thousands of years
Personal history
A lifetime.

Her dreams
Flowed
Floated.

Narrated a story
Narrated a love
Narrated a heart.

Her hand-painted fan.

“Alone. Not Lonely”

Jordan
Through Harold’s Lens:

Big & Barren
Flat
360
Scattered rocks
Skimpy shrubs.

Black snaking ribbon
Long
Narrow
Shimmered.

Blind curve

Brakes jammed
Squealed
Smoked
Burned
Skid sideways.

Shoulder
Crashed against door
Head
Crashed against dash.

Huddled masses

Hundreds
Weaving across black ribbon
Long line
Stretching wide.

Unique goat bells
Signaled stud males
Signaled ewes in heat.

Roaming groups
Long hair
Waiting
Shearing for wool.

On the tail
Nomad
Dusty
Shuffling slowly
Barren desert.

Tattered sweater & wool
Loose cotton & head wrap.

She was ten
Small
One stick in hand
Herding
Hundreds of friends.

She was not alone.

“Little Guys & I”

Myanmar
Through Harold’s Lens:

Seven little guys
Kicking ball
In Park.

Sat down
Watched
Mr. SLR Nikon had fun.

Little guys stopped
Came over
Quizzical look.

Touched fingers
High fives
Bumped fists.

Little guys watched Mr. SLR
Showed photos
Little guys laughed.

Loaned Mr. SLR
Little guys shot.

We laughed together.

Seven small kids
Me
Two languages
Shared a moment
Bonded
Loved
Had fun.

How beautiful
Our world can be.

Chile. “Where Spirits Soar”

Chile
Through Harold’s Lens:

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You will receive the full sensual experience of this story.

Bottom of our world
Where ice mountains drift
Where winds of ice blow
Where giant condors soar.

The melodic beauty
The haunting sounds
The lone pan flute
Flowed.

Across the Andes Mountain Range
Around thick, wood forest
Around dark, bark trees
Around green, pine needles.

Drawing me
Luring me
Sucking me in
Capturing me.

My first view

Long black flowing hair
Strong fighting face
Distant stare
Spiritual leader?

What was happening here?

The Great Spirit?
Deep religious rite?
Communication with ancestors, Gods?
Fireballs, comets, shooting stars?

Cultural worship?
Harmonious earthly elements?
Wind, rain, mountains, springs
Animals, birds, trees, plants
Full moon.

Ritual love affair?
Language of the land?
Traditional. Native
Beauty, love
Honor, virtue.

Slowly
Silently
I nestled in
Soft pine needles.

Listening
Swaying
Emotionally bathing.

The beauty of our world.