April 2, 2022April 4, 2022 photobyjohnbo

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #193 – They Say It’s Your Birthday…

“Count your nights by stars, not shadows; count your life with smiles, not tears.”
– Italian Proverb

Adding to that, count your age by friends, not years. In my 73 years on the planet, I can attest to the wisdom of these quotes. This post, published on April 2, happens to coincide with the anniversary of my birthday. Not that I’m so special, everyone has a birthday, and I have been lucky enough to have survived over seven decades of celebrating my own special day.

On my birthday in 2015, the wispy clouds in the late afternoon drew me to my favorite spot at the edge of the White Tank Mountains in Buckeye, Arizona. I captured the opening image during the golden hour, a panorama that became one of my favorite images of the desert at sunset.

There are several baseball diamonds in the Phoenix Metro and prior to the start of the baseball season, several pro teams play each other in exhibition games, usually from late February to the end of March. In 2012, it happened that the final game for the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds at the diamond in Goodyear was on my birthday. My wonderful wife, Lynn, provided the tickets… ok, so I bought some of the beer. >grin<

In 2013, Lynn and I headed to Tucson with our hiking club. On April 2, we stopped at Picacho Peak, about halfway between Phoenix and Tucson, to hike the mountain that was the site of the only Civil War battle fought in the Arizona Territory. From there, we also visited the historic town of Tucson.

Some of our family joined us in 2018 for a cruise on the Dolly, a ship that tours Canyon Lake, a manmade lake near Phoenix. Created by a dam, the lake provides views of wildlife like bighorn sheep. High on a spire, an eagle built a nest, and I happened to get a birthday present of an image of mama and two fledglings.

In late March 2019, Lynn and I began a journey from Los Angeles to Miami via the Panama Canal. Other family members accompanied us and we made several stops along the way. It was our second trip through the canal. We were invited along with other family members to make this birthday even more special for me than our original trip through the canal in 2014.

On the evening of my birthday, I captured a sunset off the coast of Mexico, about 85 miles (136 km) southwest of Puerto Vallarta. On that note, I leave you with your challenge for the week.

Maybe you had a special birthday anniversary, or you have a new birthday in the family. Do you celebrate your pet’s birthday? Maybe it’s a birthday of an organization, or of your blog. For this week’s challenge, show us what is special to you about birthdays.

If you would like to join us on the Lens-Artist Challenges, click the link to find out how to join in the fun: https://photobyjohnbo.wordpress.com/about-lens-artists/

I also leave you with a link to a video that you can play on your birthday. It’s from the Beatles on their White Album released in 1968. Happy Birthday to you, whenever that may be!