Galaxy Flyer

The bikes have hit the road and today's thermometer is going to read close to 80 in Milwaukee. Can you say "Bike Ride!" Whether you own a Harley or a rusty old Galaxy Flyer, today is the day to get out and explore that "galaxy" we've not seen since October - green grass and blue skies.

If you're like me, you might fondly recall the first freedom from your parents when you could ride off on your bicycle. There were boundaries I had to stay within, of course, but in my small town in upstate New York, that meant I had about 2-3 miles in any direction. Village boundaries were the limit and the expanse in between was my 'hood.'

After it had rained, we'd ride through mud puddles, as fast as we could, while holding up our legs so we wouldn't get wet. We'd ride with baseball gloves threaded over the handle bars and give each other rides on a long banana seats and handlebars. Once dad showed us how to pump up the tires and change a flat, we were off for what seemed like hours. I'm sure Mom loved it!

There was a gaggle of kids in my neighborhood that would ride 3 miles, one way, to the Park program held during the summer. We owned the roads in town and it felt like our own personal parade as we all road abreast, taking up the entire width of the road. We built bumps to fly over, stood up on the seats and handle bars while riding and even turned our bodies around, while sitting backwards on the handlebars, and peddled. No one ever got hurt beyond a little road rash, and if you haven't experience road rash, you haven't really rode a bike! It was the way we learned to be athletic, coordinated and in touch with our kinesthetic abilities of balance and shifting body positions. I was blessed to grow up at the time I did. One bike, so much freedom!

Go explore your "galaxy" today!

First Holy Communion

Spring is here! The weather is teasing us, the tulips and crocuses are popping up, and First Holy Communions are just around the corner. Every year I enjoy creating images of this special event and am reminded of the photographs my father made of my First Holy Communion.

It was a leggy, spindly child, all spiffed up in a white dress, shoes and gloves, standing next to the portly Monsignor Schneider with his signatory peaked hat, for the typical photo to celebrate the day. My father, with his Kodak rangefinder slung over his shoulder, always shot Kodak slide film, and today, those images still look good! And that was 44 years ago.

When I look back on my family's photos, I realize the impact and importance that the images I make today will have on family's for generations to come! Families will enjoy seeing this young boy, who will someday be someone's uncle or father and they will say things like, "He still has that same look," or they'll remark, "Little Matt looks so much like his father did at that age!"

This brings me back to a favorite quote I have near my desk: "Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does." William James