Riddle of a Beach Bike Ride Ends in a Sonnet

 A blonde, quite a sight, on the rail,

Artist on bike and camera on graveled trail.

A train roared with might,

She mimed, "Perfect plight!"

He biked off, with a photo of fail.

An event unfolded with a trip to the local store. The riddle contains clues of the entire event. However, I want to close in on a value I adopted as an Artist and Photographer. The message is simple, always take a camera with you as something is bound to happen worthy of imaging. I won't say much in words. I will say a lot in prose of this event to prove my point. The photograph below will birth these words. Had I not had my camera this event would have drifted out of the light into the shadows where demons prefer it to stay.

The event below is not a fictitious event. The Sonnet below the image expresses the event much more clearly than I describe so please read the Sonnet and share some comments.


The Blonde Imaged By My Nikon
  by Christopher Dean & Gemini
Her golden hair, a halo spun of light,
Frames eyes that hold a fractured, wilder gleam.
Her feet, though bare, a shocking, piteous sight,
Scarred, bleeding, calloused, shattering a dream.
Is she a withering yellow rose, to meet
The iron wheels, a train's relentless might?
Where's hope when smiles, for cameras, bittersweet,
Mask pain that burns within the fading light?
Was beauty's power, a cruel and fatal art,
The very force that crushed her spirit's flight?
Why none to grasp the hand, the breaking heart,
When heaven's vault received her silent plea?
Why are her eyes so clear in maddened state?
Is love's despair, a madness, sealed by fate?

This event unfolded because I had my Nikon D7100 strapped around my neck even for a quick run to the local store. I was on a bicycle and broke the ice with the young lady pictured above by asking permission to photograph her. Permission was granted. By doing this I was able to help her walk off the tracks as she was barefooted and get her on her way home. The Sonnet above expresses the mood of the scene in its entirety.

Thank you for reading and participating in my blogs. If there are any other requests by anyone, please post them in the comments.


Location: Montgomery, AL, USA

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