I THINK, YOU THINK, I THINK…

Many years ago, when our children were much younger, we used to play a board game called “I Think, You Think, I Think”. The essence was to guess what other players were thinking in given circumstances. There were cards with questions like, “You found a wallet with 100 dollars, what would you do?” Another card would list three options. And the guesser had to choose what the other players were thinking about the choice. I had a lot of fun when one of our daughters would think what I think about one of things, while I made a different choice. To this day, I hear in my head, “Dad, you would not do that.”

This game came to my mind when recently during some turbulent events in Russia, when I saw on the news one of the “experts” was asked a question about what is going on. He expressed his opinion by stating, “I think.” The next day the events turned out to be the complete opposite to what this expert was thinking.

And this, I think, can be said about anything in our lives either our personal affairs, economy, or politics, since we never know what the other person thinks and what actions are going to be taken as a result. Therefore, do not think too much, just enjoy the moment. What do you think the three images I am sharing with you represent? Please let me know.

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LIFE CYCLE

I received a phone call recently, with the name Taya on my phone’s screen. However, instead of Taya’s voice, it was her husband Peter. “I am returning your call to Taya”, he said. “Taya is gone.” This was very shocking news. “When?” I asked. “Half an hour ago, I am calling you from the hospital,” -he said.

I first met Taya many years ago when she was a real estate agent. Later on, she and Peter became our clients and this relationship evolved into a friendship. We would meet for a dinner, sharing our latest life stories, about their children, and their grandchildren. A year ago, they told us about their trip to Florida, where they planned to retire. This did not happen. Taya was a very nice person, considerate, reliable, and a good friend. She complemented and stood behind ambitious Peter’s projects. Together they were a wonderful couple for forty-four years.

Being 76 years young, I hear more and more about people who left me behind in our life’s cycle. From the moment we are born, we all have one destination. The question is, what we do in between; how many lives do we touch, and how many positive differences do we make?

Three images of roses show the life cycle of flowers as a reminder to enjoy life while we still can.

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BOUQUETS TO ART

Two weeks ago, we visited the de Young Museum, to see the Floral Art Exhibition. It had 113 floral art pieces displayed throughout the museum galleries. I photograph flowers all the time and you can see images of my bouquets at thehealingimages.com. The bouquets in the museum were unique pieces of art, like sculptures. Since they were positioned in front of the permanent art collection on the walls, I discovered art which I did not notice before. Usually, we go to the de Young for their special exhibitions, like the current one, “Ansel Adams in Our Time”, not leaving enough time to see art.

To absorb and appreciate art, we need more time and not to run from one piece to another. I was reading about a famous photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson, who before becoming a photographer, was trained as a painter. At the end of his life, he stopped taking photos and returned to painting. He would go to museums and would sit in front of one painting for hours. The well-known phrase, “The Decisive Moment”, which was a mistranslation of the title of his book called “Images à la Sauvette”, became the cornerstone of my type of photography.

Instead of showing you very complicated images of the bouquets, I am sharing with you these three photos of lovely ladies who volunteered in the museum with flowers on their heads, whom I captured in the decisive moment.

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SMALL AND BEAUTIFUL

Over forty-seven years ago, I first heard the phrase “Small is Beautiful”. At that time, we lived in Israel and I worked as a project manager, supplying and building industrial plants in many countries in the world. When we needed additional funds for one of our projects, we went to the person in charge of money. He used this phrase which comes from the book, “Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered” written by E.F. Schumacher. It is based on the concept that small and frugal can go a long way in any projects.

I thought about this phrase recently, but for a different reason. During one of our trips with Max to Golden Gate Park, I noticed a proliferation of wild flowers. However, unlike cultivated ones like roses, the flowers were very small. I was excited to see and photograph them. I moved from one to the next one, and the next, like a child who sees many toys at once. After all, the flowers were small and beautiful.

If you love nature, I strongly recommend the book, “Seeds of Hope” written by Jane Goodall, who is well known for her work with chimpanzees. In the book, she shares fascinating stories about trees, flowers, and seeds. I am sharing these three images of insects who seem to like flowers as well, though for different reasons.

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WHAT WAS THE LAST THOUGHT THEY HAD?

I received a phone call recently, from a real estate agent whom I had not worked with before. She had a listing for a home which had a lot of problems and could not be financed by a conventional lender. I assured her that there is a special financing program called “Fix and Flip”, specifically for such kind of properties. I prepared a special flyer describing the way the program works, and received a number of calls from the potential buyers. However, when the dust settled, there were thirty-six offers, and the property was sold for cash, well over the listing price. Some call that types of property a contractor’s dream. The feasibility of such projects depends on different factors. One of them is the cost of the financing, which is often ignored because of the stiff competition.

I thought about this during our recent trip to North Carolina. During the last two days my wife and I stayed with our friends in the small town of Mars Hill. Their house is located in the countryside, surrounded by forests and meadows. While driving around, our friend Richard pointed out many homes and barns that were abandoned by their owners, really creating contractors’ dreams, but not many takers. He told me that when he drives by, he often thinks “What was the last thought the owner had before leaving?”

When I was thinking about writing this story, I was considering showing you the images of some of the dilapidated buildings, which I specially photographed. Instead, I decided to share three images showing the beauty of the area, including our friends’ house and one contractor’s dream.

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WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN AN ARTIST AND AN ARTISAN?

During our recent visit to the San Francisco Art Show, our daughter Alona, who is an art consultant, pointed out to me that while there are many good artists, only a few reach the level of their work being collected by serious art connoisseurs. I thought about this statement during our visit to Ashville, North Carolina, which I wrote about recently.

Ashville is known as an artsy town. We were told that during the construction of the Biltmore Estate, many artisans came here, and some stayed. This laid the foundation for the River Art District, where a large number of art galleries and art studios cluster along the river, today. Some of the art we saw in Asheville was amazing; but, Alona’s comment was buzzing in my head, with the question, “What separates an artist from an artisan? And who makes that judgement?”

And then I directed this question to myself. I call myself a photo-artist, and to support my ego, Alona commissioned some of my photographs for her new home, from me. But I will let you be the judge of the three images from our trip. And I strongly encourage you to visit art galleries and museums to develop your own appreciation and judgements.

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WHERE TO FIND BEAUTY

As the saying goes: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. However, most people will agree that a rose is definitely a beautiful flower. There was a reason why William Shakespeare wrote in The Two Noble Kinsmen: “Of all flowers me thinks a rose is best”. I found this quote in “52 Inspiring Rose Quotes”. When my wife and I visited Portland, Oregon last year, we had an opportunity to explore a number of beautiful roses in the squares around the neighborhood. Portland happens to be called the City of Roses.

Roses are growing everywhere, including around our home, and I often capture their beauty with my camera. On our Sunday afternoon walk with Max to the Rose Garden in Golden Gate Park, we saw people relaxing laying on the grass, sitting on a bench and conversing with a friend or taking photos. It is where beautiful people blend with the beautiful nature.

Now is the best time to visit the garden when the flowers are blooming, and to take your own photos of beautiful roses and smell their fragrance. Meanwhile, I am sharing with you some beautiful moments in people’s lives blended with the natural beauty.

If you love flowers, do not miss “Bouquets to Art 2023” show in de Young museum from June 5^th to June 11^th, 2023. I recommend to buy tickets in advance.

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WHERE IS THE LARGEST HOME
IN AMERICA?

You might have seen photos of mansions, which look like palaces, that sell for gazillions of dollars in fancy real estate magazines. But nothing comes even close to the Biltmore Estate, located in Ashville, NC. I started writing about our trip there, last week. It is 175,000 square feet and was built in 1887 for George Washington Vanderbilt, who dubbed it his “little mountain escape”.

What makes it even more spectacular — it is surrounded by 8,000 acres of magnificent gardens. For comparison, Golden Gate Park is “only” 1,017 acres. The Vanderbilt family has a fascinating history, which started with borrowing $100 to reach their greatest riches. Cornelius Vanderbilt was a 19^th century American business owner, magnate, as well as a philanthropist, who had a net worth equal to what would be 185 billion today at the time of his death in 1877. It was his grandson George who used the money he inherited from his father to build the Biltmore Estate and other beautiful homes in America.

Cornelius Vanderbilt is often quoted for saying, “Any fool can make a fortune; it takes a man of brains to hold onto it after it is made”. Unfortunately, it did not take long for the heirs to squander their fortune. Nevertheless, the descendants of the family still own the company that manages the Biltmore Estate today.

Enjoy these three images from the gardens, which were a delight to visit.

WHERE IS LITTLE SWITZERLAND?

An obvious answer to the question – it is not in Europe, since they have one, which is normal size. Given the English name, it is probably in the United States. To get there, we first flew to Charlotte, North Carolina. From there we drove to Ashville, where we came to for a weeklong vacation. And the next day, for almost two hours we drove along Blue Ridge Parkway, stopping from time to time to take pictures of the sprawling vistas, until arriving to the place called Little Switzerland.

It is really little; has a hotel and a few places to get a meal. We had tea with delicious pastries inside the Café-Bookstore. It has an incredible collection of new and used books, some of them 1^st edition. You can ask, who in his right mind would travel from San Francisco just to have a cup of tea in this remote place? For me, the answer is very simple.

Ashville, which is a lovely town with a lot of artistic traditions, is part of our great country, and my wife Elfa and I are using every opportunity to visit different places to get to know them better. The actual destination was chosen because we have very good friends, whom we met over thirty years ago in the Bay Area, and who currently live in that area. In the coming weeks, I will share more of our wonderful experience. Meanwhile, enjoy these three images.

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TO HAVE TOOLS IS NOT ENOUGH

About a year ago, my wife and I had to fix our refrigerator. Suddenly the plastic on the door got loose and in spite of my engineering degree, I couldn’t figure out what caused it. My solution was to call Michael, the handyman. He did not care for my suggestions and quickly found the problem. The solution required a special screw and specific screwdriver, both of which I had.

Years ago, I fixed everything at home myself and even earned income working for a contractor when we first arrived in San Francisco, forty-three years ago. I had tools but lacked experience and knowledge how to use them. Which brings me to the mortgage business. I had conversation recently with a friend, who after working in our company, joined Wells Fargo twenty-five years ago. He was planning to retire from the bank and perhaps rejoin our company. He told me that over all these years, he was practically selling one product – jumbo fixed rate loans.

After so many years in the lending business, I will have to train him again how to use so many tools available to us, mortgage brokers. This can be said about many professions and occupations: if you do not move forward, you stay behind. These three images above show hard working people at work.

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