Rosemary in Venice 2021

Anemone coronaria 'Carmel Pastel Mix' - 19 April 2024

In my years as a magazine (etc) photographer in Vancouver the most important consideration I ever had when I was about to take a photograph was the word justification.

This meant that I had to have a good reason for taking the photograph and the methodology behind it.

Today is Rosemary’s birthday. She was born April 19 1944. This date has always been one I cannot forget as my Arrgentine birth certificate states I was born April 18, 1943. That is nonsense as I was born on August 31, 1942.

Rosemary and my daughters always made the joke that I liked to celebrate both my birthdays.

Today is Rosemary’s birthday. I feel compelled to write this blog. My youngest daughter Hilary said I did not have to write anything.

Yesterday she and I went to see a wonderful one-woman play based on Joan Didion’s  book The Year of Magical Thinking.

 I have embedded in my head that she said in an interview to the New York Times:

 “I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear.”

 This makes it obvious that I have to figure out how I am handling a beautiful sunny day with my Rosemary.

And so I will bring that word, justification, here again.

My patio had this very nice pot of Anemone coronaria ‘Carmel Pastel Mix’. Rosemary adored Anemone blanda. In my scan records I have no Anemone coronaria. I know she would have loved these. I also know she would have been upset if I had snipped them for today’s scanning. She is not here. In her memory I look at these Anemones and while I miss her intensely I smile just a tad.

Rosemary with her Anemone blanda August 2020