The Daily Picture Theme is #Sear

I participate in a photography challenge on Spoutible, a social media site, A hashtagged theme is posted each day from the account of Daily Picture Theme which describes itself as “The Big Photo Album of Our Community.” The picture theme for April 11th is #Sear. It is not a theme that I can easily match with a photo. For the featured photo for this posting, I chose a family photo of us “under the searing sun” on the sand dunes of Cape Cod circa 1964. I don’t remember ever using any sun protection back then, if it even existed. I pay for that now with my regular visits to the dermatogists and multiple MOHS procedures for skin cancer.

I searched through my photos for examples of searing food to no avail. I suppose the difference between searing and grilling is that searing is done at a higher temperature and the process blackens the food. I do have an impressive photo of chicken being grilled at the annual Autumn Festival held on Memorial Field in New Ipswich in 2023.

On This Day – April 11th (2019)

We’ve had our front deck for five years and I am so happy we decided to have it built. In the late afternoon it is enjoyable to sit outside and watch the birds at the feeders. I also placed some bluebird houses across the lawn which get regular occupants. The folks at Homeworx LLC did a fine job building it. These photos were taken during contruction on April 11, 2019.

One of the frequent visitors that we see from the deck are Bluebirds looking for the dried mealworms.

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

In the Titian Room of the Gardner Museum is a painting of Christ Carrying the Cross a favorite of Isabella. The museum docent mentioned that she directed that a vase of fresh flowers be placed on the table to honor her late husband.

Christ Carrying the Cross

When Isabella Stewart Gardner purchased the painting in 1896, it was attributed to Giorgione, who was also pupil of Bellini and documented as a colleague of Catena. Even at that time, Gardner was unsure about its authorship, although the painting’s strong quality and stirring piety led her to buy it. Bernard Berenson was frankly surprised that Gardner wanted such a strongly religious work. According to Morris Carter, the first director of the museum, the painting was Mrs. Gardner’s favorite, and she often placed a vase of violets in front of it, a tradition maintained by the museum. Source: Alan Chong, "Christ Carrying the Cross," in Eye of the Beholder, edited by Alan Chong et al. (Boston: ISGM and Beacon Press, 2003): 99.