A Year and a Little More Rain Later

Here is the most recent picture of me and my brother Philip.  Lovely, isn't it?  My mom took it the last time we were all together in early July, and we weren't ready for it.  There's something I like about this picture, though.  There we are, standing together and looking a little bit weird.  That's pretty normal, I suppose, so it makes me smile and miss my brother.  He has also stood beside me during much more serious things that I was not ready for, so I can let it remind me of some poignant memories if I want to, and that makes me miss him even more.

But I'm not writing about my brother today.  This morning, I was not ready for the rain that caught me on my way to work.  It didn't last long, but it was just enough to make me regret wearing my hair down.  It was also just enough to make me think of Philip, who loves rainy days.

But I'm not writing about my brother today.  A year ago, I told you about my odd fascination with taking pictures like this:

And this:

For whatever reason, orphaned umbrellas like this catch my eye, so my camera lens catches them.  You're welcome to read what I wrote about that here, if you'd like.  My brother did and said he liked it, but I'm not writing about him today.

After my umbrella post, I stopped any semblance of blog writing for work-related reasons, and once those reasons no longer mattered, I never picked it up again.  I didn't think anyone would really care, but my big brother, who has always taken good care of me, noticed and said he missed it.  Over the last several weeks, he's been gently encouraging me to do some writing.  I would usually say something like, "thanks!  Yeah, I should really do that," throw a few sentences together, and never finish anything.

A week or two later, he would mention it again and tell me he missed my writing.  With a few minor exceptions--like the day when we were little and he suggested I touch an electric fence--I'm always glad when I listen to my brother, and I began to think that maybe I should listen again.

So I am taking my brother's advice, but I don't have a whole lot to say yet.  I suppose I could write about him, but I'm not doing that today.  All the creativity I have left for now is one final broken umbrella photo, and I will leave it at that.

Enjoy.