HELLO SEPTEMBER

"Italy Stories, a beginning"

have been staring in the face over the last few weeks.

There's plenty more on those lines to share right here,

but things have been, well, a bit hectic.

Hectic but serene at the same time.

You see, 

a huge project fell through,

a project that I was already stressed about during the summer holidays,

and this turn came as a relief I have to say. 

Plenty of better things were waiting around the corner,

a number of smaller gigs that happened to fall around the same time.

Much nicer ones than the one I was sort of dreading.

And I've learned something in the process,

something of trust,

swearing under my breath not to say 'yes' to the wrong things

the next time round,

even in a moment of despair.

And although it's been mad busy,

there's been a sense of new things on the horizon,

an autumm, which awaits like a journal,

the first pages leaving a little breathless,

but beyond, pages inviting in their exquisite promise of unknown opportunities.

This weekend I've also said my goodbyes.

The workspace I've had the pleasure of winding my way to

on and off over the last few years

awaits its new, wonderful tenants. 

A creative couple I admire so brought in their cardboard boxes,

a huge painting wrapped up and leaning against those windows I loved so,

as I left my key on the table & closed that door for the last time. 

Although the goodbyes are bittersweet,

I know this is how it's meant to be. 

The roses might be nearly gone,

but there are plenty of flowers in this season.

A little odd in their beauty sometimes

& wonderful all the same. 

Treasures in the shadows
waiting for us to take notice.

x

COUNTRY AIR

we drove out of town today.

popped to a second hand market

held in a former railway station building,

then carried on to a farm.

had a staring contest with the cutest highland cows

(although we did wonder whether they even saw anything 

from under their fringes :)),

stroked a cat

that sounded like a sewing machine

with all that purring,

admired some horses & sheep from afar. 

had a coffee & flicked through Danish interior magazine candy

in an old barn that's now a lifestyle shop cum café.

returned home with our lungs full of country air,

ready for some rest.

x

JOURNEY JOURNAL

On Saturday, we took a little escapade.

Sat on a bus through a landscape of fields,

 a dog darted across a meadow,

behind the trees the sea. 

The sun threw orange puddles over the passengers' faces,

blinded the eyes,

but no one drew the curtains for cover.

Everyone thirsty for golden heat. 

Happiness took hold in that moment.

I notice that for me a sense of happiness

often intertwines with the feeling of freedom,

 crystalized during journey-making,

even if a simple bus ride to a nearby town.

We did our customary rounds of the little boutiques,

lunch in peace,

coffee & cake at our usual haunt

under the shadow of a mural on the far wall. 

Outside the white church,

black-clad mourners gathered for a funeral. 

On the way back,

my daughter all tired and quiet after a long day,

I was mesmerized by the conversation of two ladies a row behind.

One roughly in her fifties,

the other, silver-haired, perhaps eighty or so.

They talked deeply about life, 

loneliness and its different forms,

how the elderly lady had intentionally chosen to live alone

and had no regrets.

They spoke with such respect and depth,

 as equals,

friend to friend,

leaving me gasping at how rare it was

and what a warm glow it radiated around.

 People so often talk to the elderly

as if they were children

or already removed from normality and emotions. 

And how much gets lost

when we talk past 

and not with each other. 

Teimme lauantaina retken.

Bussilla halki peltomaisemien,

yhdessä kohtaa viiletti koira pellon poikki,

sitten siinsi taas meri.

Aurinko heitteli matkalaisten sekaan oransseja läikkiään,

se sokaisi silmät 

eikä kukaan vetänyt verhoja suojaksi.

Taitaa kaikkien iho janota kultaista lämpöä.

Tunsin oloni onnelliseksi juuri tuossa.

Mietin, että minulla se onnentunne tuppaa sekoittumaan vapaudentunteeseen 

ja tiivistyy juuri matkalla,

vaikkapa sitten vaatimattomasti bussilla lähikaupunkiin. 

Perillä tutut putiikit, lounas,

kahvit Helmen pöydässä

seinämaalauksen alla. 

Valkoisen kirkon pihamaalla hautajaissaattue mustissaan.

Kotimatkalla matkasta väsynyt ja hiljainen lapsi.

Hurmioiduin kahden ruotsinkielisen rouvan keskustelusta rivi taempana. 

Toinen karkeasti viisissäkymmenissä, 

toinen jo harmaahapsinen, ehkä kahdeksankymmentä. 

He keskustelivat syvällisesti elämästä, yksinäisyydestä, 

siitä kuinka vanhempi rouva oli tietoisesti valinnut yksinelämisen 

eikä sitä kadu. 

Kunnioittavasti, syvällisesti ja tasavertaisesti, 

ystävä ystävälle,

ja  minä äimistelin sitä, 

miten harvinaista se onkaan,

kun niin usen vanhuksille puhutaan kuin lapsille 

tai kuin olisivat jo elämästä ja tunteista vieraantuneet. 

Ja miten paljon sitä jääkään paitsi,

kun puhutaan ohi eikä kanssa.

ENJOY THE SILENCE

after a pretty intense week,

the soul soars at the weekend.

a spot of mint tea & intoxicating freedom,

enjoying the silence.

x

THE JOURNEY

"One day you finally knew

what you had to do, 

& began,

though the voices around you 

kept shouting their bad advice ~"

"though the whole house

began to tremble

& you felt the old tug

at your ankles."

"Mend my life"

each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

"You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy was terrible." 

"It was already late enough,

& a wild night,

& the road full of fallen branches and stones."

"But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

& there was a new voice 

which you slowly recognized as your own,"

"that kept you company

as you strode deeper & deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do ~"

"determined to save 

the only life you could save."

Words: Mary Oliver

Model: Ani Pinchuk

Muah: Stephanie Korhonen

© Rebecca Watson Photography

WHAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF

... well, take an entire Sunday

and a light-filled space,

... a husband,

who's willing to help clear up

said space,

and take charge of the home while it all happens,

yet again,

... two photographers with a shared secret pinterest board

filled with powder-hued eye candy 

to set the backdrop

for each of us doing our own thing,

and props, 

some handmade at the last minute,

... one lovely, patient model,

the epitome of elegance 

on the inside and out,

fed with strawberries and bubbly

(well, lunch, too :)),

willing to take part in the dream,

... a makeup artist

who immediately got the gist 

of what we were after,

creating her magic 

that remained flawless

all through the day.

(and yes, 

there's a Facebook group for that!

we were strangers,

but no longer.

there's more magic in store together, i'm sure...)

... music,

love & excitement

that bubble over. 

afterwards,

a feeling that you've given your all,

run a marathon.

achy neck, dizzy head,

feeling totally disoriented.

i have a thing for seeing glimpses

of what has gone into a final image,

and wanted to share some here, too.

& something of the joy

of getting one's act together

to pull this off.

gathering forces

and finally getting on with it.

i find that photography for me

is a constant battle 

between feeling satisfied 

and hungry,

never ever one without the other.

right now i feel like i've been fed

at least for a little while.
that, my friends,
is an unfamiliar sensation for me :) 

x

model: Ani Pinchuk
muah: Stephanie Korhonen

LATELY...

plans for a shoot

involving plenty of tulle, top hats 

& powdered cheeks

still feeling the rhythm,

dance, soul, joy, warmth & beauty

from last night's concert in my hood

with Nouvelle Vague 

and opening Liset Alea,

who was so incredible, too.

A Parisian glow landed in Helsinki for the night

and I'm not gonna let it go...




I've also been feasting my eyes
on this apartment,
and these boho spaces.



And I thank you for your Monday moment
here with me
~  wishing you plenty of light & love
for the week ahead.


x