Barbara & Rob

On my zoomies through the village this morning I gave Jacob, now aka Noah a print of his image. He was delighted, so much so that I have now run off an A4 print for posterity. He is very aware of his Cornish origins; his family has been traced back 500 years to the same area. On a side note, Epson produce a photographic paper called “Ultra Glossy Photo Paper;” I have been using it to print my images as small presents for those who subject themselves to my lens. The difference between the previous glossy paper and the new paper is very noticeable. Eg skin colouration or markings are distinct and natural rather than slightly blurred and masked. 

A few minutes later I spotted my friend Rob, a builder, walking very slowly with Barbara, his wife. I haven’t seen Barbara for ages, so it came as a shock to be told she is suffering with, and I think I have remembered this correctly, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. 

This news has left me feeling profoundly saddened. Barbara was a teaching assistant at the village primary school. She was always seen with her huge bouncy mop of hair, enjoying life, smiling and happy. For a lady of her abilities to be struck down like this annoys my sensibilities. I know many of you have religious beliefs which I do not share, yet we are tolerant of this and continue to communicate on Blip. On occasions such as this I do believe the ethereal omnipotent being is a harsh judge. 

Consequently I have added an extra, almost identical to the main image. In the main image I hope you see what I see. Two people deeply in love, and totally reliant on each other. The second is slightly different in that apart from the protective arm around Barbara, a small bit of interdependence is missing. There is, in Rob’s eyes, a shadow of loss we may observe, but never fully feel.