Denver

The Chamberlain Observatory telescope, a 20 inch Clark Saegmuller refractor, was among the largest of its kind at the time of construction. This telescope first saw light in 1894 and is still in use today. The observatory has a great feel of antiquity, but in a good way. It made me nostalgic for the heavens that I had never been to.

The holiday season is almost at an end, so I thought that I would post the last of the holiday lights here in Denver. Union Station which clearly promotes “travel by train” is a Denver Landmark that readjusts its lighting every year for Christmas. It was originally built in 1881 and then destroyed by fire in 1894. At its height, it was served by 80 daily trains operated by 6 different railroad operators.

So yesterday I went down to St. Johns Cathedral in Denver and met some wonderful people in the middle of putting up their Christmas Decorations. The Christmas spirit was in full force as everyone whirled about in their last minute preparations. They were kind enough to duck behind some objects to let me fire off some shots.

On one of the last days of real heat here in Colorado, I went for a walk with my father who seems to fall in love with every tree he sees. It would seem annoying, walking through a forest, and having to hear a comment about almost every tree, but I have to say that I find myself jealous that he should have this “child’s eye” for the unique, and find myself looking at almost every one of his discoveries. This picture was me, with my camera, trying to capture what I knew only he could see. When he pointed it out to me, he called it the “snaking tree”; and now when I see that tree, I too will call it the “snaking tree”.

Almost everywhere I go, I end up visiting the cemeteries to see how a place honors the dead. Overseas, the remembrance of loved ones past is a constant vigil that is seen everywhere in the form of fresh flowers, pictures, and letters. In America, the case for the dead is not strong. So is this crypt long forgotten and overgrown or being embraced by life?