Voyage of Life: Manhood

I just stumbled upon
the above image
from a painting
called "The Voyage of Life: Manhood" (1840)
by Thomas Cole (1801-1848)








Wow.

That exactly how I feel
about my own journey.

Especially
since I've done
my share of river rafting
and there's nothing quite like
hearing and smelling
an approaching rapids
while being inexorably drawn
toward the brink
of falling water.

Here's the rest of the series:


Childhood

Youth

Old Age









And here's a Thomas Cole
from 1830,
"A Distant View of Niagara"
(brought to my attention
by this post on the A.I.C. blog)







As an accompanying note suggests
this was how the area around the falls
might have looked before the arrival
of Euro-Americans.

By 1830
there would already
have been noticeable
commercial development.

Not that I'm
especially religious,
but if you stand far enough away,
this does appear to be
some kind of Christian banner
with a big white cross down the center.


Though,
I would rather stand up close
and get lost in the dreamy foliage.

Native Americans
play an important role
in this tableaux.








There also seems to be a few
hanging out
on that distant cliff.


So, it turns out
I'm quite the Romantic,
who would much rather gaze
into this happy illusion
than face a
cold,
hard,
real
day.

(where my tiny wooden boat
is being swept upon
the relentless river rocks)