All of us grow up in particular realities - a home, family, a clan, a small town, a neighborhood. Depending upon how we're brought up, we are either deeply aware of the particular reading of reality into which we are born, or we are peripherally aware of it.
Chaim Potok
Recently, I've been doing a lot of research on my genealogy and discovered radical facts, that I'll save for another blog post! More importantly though, doing the research made me think about where I live now (Fonticello Park Area adjacent to Woodland Heights, Richmond, VA) and how my location impacts my sons. My husband suggested that I take a trip around the neighborhood to capture places we enjoy or are parts of everyday scenery.
The places important to me and what I want my sons to remember about where we live are *the James River *closeness in proximity to boutiques and art *Nature *Permanence of Materials--I love stone, it is an investment that will matched with good design will last forever! ;) *History *Progress *People- I love, love firemen/women! (My uncle was a fire fighter in West Palm Beach, FL and I've always thought it was a noble profession mixed with a little adrenaline rush!) AND *FUN!
I grew up in a family that moved a lot. I moved over 10 times by the time I was 10 years old and attended as many as 12 or 13 schools by the time I was 14. Chaim Potok's quote is so insightful because it is a truth not everyone understands. Being only " peripherally aware of " the "reality into which we're born" was something I longed for growing up. I think and absorb experiences as images, montages and movies, lending me a unique opportunity to dip into the past. My "stack of images and memories" is threefold what a most typical people's are.
I have to admit that I took Chaim's quote out of context and I do not know the context in which it was written. I can hypothesize though and consider that he was writing to entice us all to try to be more aware of one another and love our communities so that our particular realities are ones of warmth and grounding. We all live by a series of actions that are molded by the reality of our surroundings--that's why I choose to live in the Fonticello Park community.
We're close enough to Richmond City to preserve a little grittiness but removed enough to enjoy backyards and neighbors. I love taking my sons to Forest Hill Park, Fonticello Park playground and skatepark, shopping for hot eclectic art pieces or antiques and going to the river. I can't imagine a better place to live in Virginia.
My watercolors and this blog give my sons a glimpse of the "reality into which [they] are born"---and it's a good place with good people.
The neighborhood can also be a bit of what Will Smith describes when he says " I was raised in a Baptist household, went to a Catholic church, lived in a Jewish neighborhood and had the biggest crush on the Muslim girls from one neighborhood over"---- AND, I LOVE IT!!
The places important to me and what I want my sons to remember about where we live are *the James River *closeness in proximity to boutiques and art *Nature *Permanence of Materials--I love stone, it is an investment that will matched with good design will last forever! ;) *History *Progress *People- I love, love firemen/women! (My uncle was a fire fighter in West Palm Beach, FL and I've always thought it was a noble profession mixed with a little adrenaline rush!) AND *FUN!
I grew up in a family that moved a lot. I moved over 10 times by the time I was 10 years old and attended as many as 12 or 13 schools by the time I was 14. Chaim Potok's quote is so insightful because it is a truth not everyone understands. Being only " peripherally aware of " the "reality into which we're born" was something I longed for growing up. I think and absorb experiences as images, montages and movies, lending me a unique opportunity to dip into the past. My "stack of images and memories" is threefold what a most typical people's are.
I have to admit that I took Chaim's quote out of context and I do not know the context in which it was written. I can hypothesize though and consider that he was writing to entice us all to try to be more aware of one another and love our communities so that our particular realities are ones of warmth and grounding. We all live by a series of actions that are molded by the reality of our surroundings--that's why I choose to live in the Fonticello Park community.
We're close enough to Richmond City to preserve a little grittiness but removed enough to enjoy backyards and neighbors. I love taking my sons to Forest Hill Park, Fonticello Park playground and skatepark, shopping for hot eclectic art pieces or antiques and going to the river. I can't imagine a better place to live in Virginia.
My watercolors and this blog give my sons a glimpse of the "reality into which [they] are born"---and it's a good place with good people.
The neighborhood can also be a bit of what Will Smith describes when he says " I was raised in a Baptist household, went to a Catholic church, lived in a Jewish neighborhood and had the biggest crush on the Muslim girls from one neighborhood over"---- AND, I LOVE IT!!
