Photo Challenge: CORNER
“You can’t stay in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.” A. A. Milne
Photo Challenge: CORNER
Photo Challenge: CORNER
There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self. Aldous Huxley
Choose your corner, pick away at it carefully, intensely and to the best of your ability and that way you might change the world. Charles Eames
As I considered this week’s photo challenge on the theme CORNER what came to mind was a ramshackle barn that I saw on a corner street in Dutchess County. It was old and falling apart but, it was located in a beautiful area; across the street from an artists community and next door to a farm teeming with green life. As I pulled onto the unpaved driveway, and drove to the side and back of the barn, a flood of imaginary memories came to mind. What was life life for the original owner? Did he/she have far flung dreams of moving from the corner to center stage? I could tell that in its days of glory, it was a beautifully built two floor barn made to accommodate man and his beloved. But now, all had fallen to waste. Then I remembered the poem below… POST UPDATED!
Vagabond’s House by Donald Benson Blanding Canto 1 via allpoetry.com
When I have a house . . . as I sometime may . . .
I’ll suit my fancy in every way.
I’ll fill it with things that have caught my eye
In drifting from Iceland to Molokai.
It won’t be correct or in period style,
But . . . oh, I’ve thought for a long, long while
Of all the corners and all the nooks,
Of all the bookshelves and all the books,
The great big table, the deep soft chairs,
And the Chinese rug at the foot of the stairs
(It’s an old, old rug from far Chow Wan
That a Chinese princess once walked on)
“Still round the corner there may wait, A new road or a secret gate.” J. R. R. Tolkien
Photo Challenge: CORNER
Photo Challenge: CORNER
In seeking comfort, we generally find a quiet corner in life where there is a minimum of conflict, and then we are afraid to step out of that seclusion. Jiddu Krishnamurti
To survive, you’ve got to keep wheedling your way. You can’t just sit there and fight against odds when it’s not going to work. You have to turn a corner, dig a hole, go through a tunnel – and find a way to keep moving. Twyla Tharp
I dont know about you, but abandoned houses always gave me the creeps. Something about a dwelling that once teemed with life and years later, it sits empty, sad and filled with unspoken memories and abandoned stories of who and what once called that space home. Why do homes get abandoned and how does that even fit this conversation about corners? Well, for starters, life is so full of surprises that even with careful planning, our dreams and wishes could take an unexpected turn that would surprise the most indifferent among us. So this barn has a history of hope, joy, celebration and completion of a task that I cannot share with you because whoever built it and lovingly maintained it, gave up the ghost long ago, and the narrative that could be shared went with it. What is my point? Take each precious memory you have and share it like fertile seeds. Plant flowers filled with grace and build friendships and connections with others so your home will always be a place of respite for you and your cherished ones because around the corner is … who knows?
Vagabond’s House – Canto 19
Then, when my house is all complete
I’ll stretch me out on the window seat
With a favourite book and a cigarette,
And a long cool drink that Oh Joy will get;
And I’ll look about at my bachelor-nest
While the sun goes zooming down the west,
And the hot gold light will fall on my face
And make me think of some heathen place
That I’ve failed to see . . . that I’ve missed some way . . .
A place that I’d planned to find some day,
And I’ll feel the lure of it driving me.
Oh damn! I know what the end will be
More below!
“Make an empty space in any corner of your mind, and creativity will instantly fill it.” Dee Hock
Photo Challenge: CORNER
Photo Challenge: CORNER
Curiosity is the essence of human existence. ‘Who are we? Where are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going?’… I don’t know. I don’t have any answers to those questions. I don’t know what’s over there around the corner. But I want to find out. Eugene Cernan
You might wonder, if I find abandoned places creepy, why did I take a photo of that barn? Great question. In 2014, the Photo Challenge theme was abandoned and I did the best I could to portray what it meant. About a year or so ago, the wise ones of our Photo Challenge team had offered us the word – ABANDONED. At the time, what flashed before my face was a memory of walking down a street somewhere, looking left and right, and seeing nothing but abandoned buildings. I ached to revisit the place again so I could capture it and frame it as a photo but I couldn’t… It was a long lost memory. As I pondered what to share for that theme, I became acutely aware that even though I’ve seen my share of abandoned buildings, I had an aversion to photographing them. I was astonished because I had never thought about it until that assignment. Well, I decided to change that attitude and promised to take photos of such spaces, if I came across them in the future. It took a long while and then I saw the barn. That is the beauty of joining a group and working on challenges that are tossed your way. It forces you to stretch, grow, and become even more observant about the world around you. It has been a blessing to join in. You are all invited to do same… Posts go up on Friday around 12 noon EDT. Hundreds of WordPress folks join in and the range is always impressive! 🙂 This post was inspired by a prompt from WP Daily Post: – CORNER More below and do check it out.
Vagabond’s House – Canto 20
I’ll go. And my house will fall away
While the mice by night and the moths by day
Will nibble the covers off all my books,
And the spiders weave in the shadowed nooks.
And my dogs . . . I’ll see that they have a home
While I follow the sun, while I drift and roam
To the ends of the earth like a chip on the stream,
Like a straw on the wind, like a vagrant dream;
And the thought will strike with a swift sharp pain
That I probably never will build again
This house that I’ll have in some far day
Well . . . it’s just a dream house, anyway.
This post was inspired by a prompt from WP Daily Post: – CORNER – Merriam-Webster defines “corner” as, among other things, “the point where converging lines, edges, or sides meet.” I also like looking at it from the opposite direction: corners are where lines, objects, and people go their separate ways. A corner is literally a turning point, full of tension and potential.
What kinds of images and emotions do corners evoke in you? In this week’s challenge, share a photo that plays on any of the word’s many meanings. Show your favorite street corner, or a cozy nook in your home where you feel truly at peace. Focus on a person or place that’s recently gone through a transformation — “turned a corner,” as we often say. Or stick to geometry and highlight the angularity of a favorite landscape or object. Whatever direction you choose, I look forward to your photos this week.
Positive Motivation Tip: Carve out your corner in life and follow it bravely.
PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: All Photos from my personal collection.
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet
Trackbacks
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Corners | Ruined for Life: Phoenix Edition
- Corner: Holt Norfolk | What's (in) the picture?
- WPC: The Corner Of Everywhere | Lillie-Put
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Structure | Ruined for Life: Phoenix Edition
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Structure – Jinan Daily Photo: The Sequel
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Structure | No Fixed Plans
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Structure | Here & Abroad
“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.” This Aldous Huxley quote speaks to me and this is what I try to do with my life and my corner of the world.
Wonderful thought provoking post with lovely images
The land surronding surley is beautiful. I like that poem, I don’t read poems near often enough. My daughter and sil ‘s property has a very old barn that was the corner stone of their little community just beautifully old.
Very beautiful photography. I can feel the history coming out of the photograph and its story.
You always put your ALL into your posts, choosing the best poems and quotes. Making us feel something deeper with your photos and words.
You are so kind. Thank you! 🙂
Such houses are always interesting! I can never contain myself and end up taking tons of photographs posing near them!
I find these photos to be interesting. I always love to try photo challenges.
The barn looks quite old and a bit dilapidated. I bet there’s an interesting story behind this once-beautiful barn.
Such a good interpretation of the photo challenge word, it shows that beauty can even be found in things which aren’t at their best x
This is an interesting post about corners. A corner is something that moves on in a different direction. It is something that we need to continue without being blocked. Thanks for sharing the thoughts and poems.
I agree. Go out of your comfort zone sometimes to experience diff kind of life. Mingle, enjoy and share what you love to do.
I really like reading this week’s challenge. I like to use the word corner as an idom. “Just as the street light went off, I caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of my eye.”
These are such interesting themes and I like how you interpreted the ‘Corner”.
This is a beautiful post! And your pics are amazing like always.
I love how you are doing weekly photo challenges, that’s awesome. It definitely can get the creative juices flowing for cure!
I love your photo challenges. For me what comes to mind when i think of corner i think of the stalls we have here in jamaica. They sell all kinds of fruits like pineapples, apples, oranges, watermelon etc. Very interesting post.
If only that barn could talk. I bet it could tell some amazing stories. I love old buildings 🙂
I’ve been enjoying your photo challenges! Love seeing how different people interpret a theme. I love your perspective and composition on the challenges – keep it up!
I really love the poem you included! It really resonates with me that you always have a home to come back to, even while you’re wandering around the globe.
Such a great photography. Love to read the blog. Thanks for sharing
This post is thought provoking. Corner. I am thinking what that word means to me and how it impacts me. Could it be a distraction from the path I am supposed to be traveling on? Or is it a call to pause, turn, and discover new things that would help me achieve my goals? Perhaps that is what it is. A call to slow down, to go and discover new things, to appreciate what lies in the periphery.
What a beautiful old structure! I love seeing these old buildings of the past, I often wonder what they must have looked like when they were first built. Thanks for sharing this!
Very nice interpretation of that photo challenge! When I think of ‘corner’ I think of the times and moments when I hit a stumbling block in the path I was following. A corner means no where else to go but back up. And definitely there were moments of those in my life.
I love old barns! They have a story to tell all on their own. Thanks for sharing!
Where is Dutchess County? It looks so peaceful and relaxing. Such a far cry from Las Vegas where I live where it is so busy and bright, It would be so nice to visit a place like this one day.:) I can’t tell where this is located.
I love your photos. As a fellow photographer I too enjoy photographing rustic subjects.
Where do you get the category or challenge topics from ?
I love it! You just never know what treasures you may find in an old barn like this – not to mention the history behind it and the nostalgia that accompanies it. Reminds me of that show, American Pickers. They would love exploring an old barn like this!
I just love summer and these pictures are so pretty, I will miss the green grass and the blue skies for sure!
I love this shot of the weather barn. It’s so beautiful in a way that’s earthy. I feel like it has a good story to tell.
My family is obsessed with that show American Pickers. When you see the lives that buildings have lived, it’s hard to not get hooked. This building must have served its occupants well.
We all seek corners or safe places where we can be who we really are. It is just a way of protecting ourselves from the harsh world.
We lived on a farm with a lot of buildings just like this one. I had plans on remodeling each and every one of them. I loved sitting outside at night drinking wine imagining!
Photographs of nature have always impressed me. It’s nice to witness so many amazing things from the desk of my computer.
Right? The power of the internet. 🙂
My husband and I were talking about this concept last night. I have mild anxiety and sometimes it makes me feel like I am stuck in a corner. I try to tell myself I don’t have to stay there though!
Sound advice… don’t stay stuck.
I’m just curious. What camera did you use for this?
My Smartphone? An Android: Samsung S7
When I see old houses like this, I also wonder about what kind of life the people lived there used to have. I’m sure this was once a very beautiful house. It does give you this concept of being in a corner. There’s so many ways to interpret it, what comes to mind usually is a place where you can sit and just be yourself.
I live in my own corner of the universe and love it. Your photos remind me of some of the places in my very rural neighborhood.
Hahaha! We all do. 🙂
These photo challenges are so awesome! Really gets you thinking and being creative. I remember back in art school, we had a topic which was called “safely contained”. We could approach it from whatever angle we wanted. I remember at the time thinking how obscure and specific it was. Until I started working on it, was when I realised that it could mean anything we wanted it to mean!
What an awesome old barn! I would love to explore inside to see what treasures it might hold.
I thought I had commented on this wonderful post already but it appears it did not post. Anyway, I love reading it again. It is always so inspiring what your photo challenge takes you. I have to think about the ‘corners’ that I have faced in my life. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Cara! I love reading your feedback too. 🙂
What a beautiful barn in the corner or no where! I love the rust and the beauty even in the run down.
These photos are so stunning! I love the greenery. I actually found these photos to be very peaceful, almost Walden-style.
What a beautiful old barn! We used to have a lot of those where I live but sadly they have all been torn down and replace with strip malls.
Imagine all the ideas you can fill into the corner of your mind or the corner of a room. Like you it was on the corner of a wall in my college dorm room that I started taping up pictures and made a photo collage. It was pretty cool. I enjoyed reading the poetry in this.
I don’t think I’ve ever thought of abandoned houses in this way. I know it will change how I feel the next time I see one.
My daughter has been noticing abandoned houses/buildings lately and has started to talk about ghosts living in them. I try to make it fun and not scary for her, but I agree…they are creepy!
Abandoned house creeps me out. I would never ever go near that house 😀
What an awesome and really interesting place..Love to go there soon..Great photos.!
I love these old barn pictures. It reminds me of Sharps Chapel, Tennessee!
I like the perspective here, The corner for me is something that brings about change and always shows a new view just hiding behind the obvious. The Abandoned places on the other hand hold this almost endearing quality in my mind, even though I totally agree with you that they are creepy too. The idea what I find endearing in these places is the way nature takes over and asserts itself in the absence of human activity. So the overgrown bush in an abandoned place is really the promise of nature that it’s teeming with life!
It’s great how each of us draw inspiration from things around us. Thank you for inspiring me.
BTW the pictures are wonderful.
I like the perspective here. The Corner for me is something that brings about change and always shows a new view just hiding behind the obvious. The Abandoned places on the other hand hold this almost endearing quality in my mind even though I do agree with you that they are creepy too.. of sorts. But what I find endearing is the fact that nature overpowers and asserts itself there in the absence of human activity so in a way assimilating it in itself. So an overgrown bush in an abandoned place is essentially teeming with life. It’s wonderful how each of us think and draw inspiration from things around us. Thank you for inspiring me and lastly, the pictures are amazing.
I appreciate your interpretation and that is what makes the photo challenge such fun. 😉
Is it wrong that i am totally intrigued by this creepy dark space? I love something with a story to tell and this place i am certain has that ten fold! I love the take on corner
I love how creatively you discussed corners and the beautiful imagery.
Great photos! Keep clicking 🙂 Hope you remember me! 😛
I have always wondered how abandoned homes are left, well, abandoned. Like what happened to their owners? Why did they decide to just leave it?…. They also give me the creeps, tbh.
My husband works for the university in the town we live in. His job finds him traveling throughout the state. Along the way, he’s taken a liking to old barns and buildings that have an interesting character. The photos he’s collected are really pretty cool!
Oh how wonderful and fortunate. I bet the collection is colorful too. 🙂
Every time I need some time to myself I always go to my office which I consider my little corner in my home. It’s my comfort and peace zone!
This is a big word to contemplate on. For me, I believe in the saying that, “Good luck is just around the corner.” If I am having doubts on the path I trod on, I stop, think, and reflect. It the road in front of me is hazy, I turn a corner. This is not to tray away from the path I’m on but to explore the other options that may be available for me.
That is true too…
These photos are beautiful. The barn looks lonely and abandoned but strong and willful. Thanks for sharing.
Your picture collages are always so beautiful and thought provoking. Thanks for sharing.
The rough corners on the barn help show what it has been through over the years. You are right, we are similar to the corners of the barn. From time to time, they are sharp and other times worn.
Interesting piece! I am also the type who loves to imagine what it is like to have lived in an abandoned house long ago when it was still new and thriving 🙂
Love that you pushed on despite your fear of old/abandoned buildings. I think you did a great job framing the barn. Despite it being old and run down, it’s beautiful.
Elizabeth I fell in love with every single word of the poem, Vagabond’s house by Donald B .Blanding.
That barn does gives a creepy feeling but I am sure it must have been a beautiful barn once upon a time.
Coming to the topic – Corner, I feel that reaching out to people is one of the most difficult tasks, as it is hard to come out of our comfort zone. But, to grow and reach new heights is essential to life.
Yes we must always be growing or we stagnate and perish like an abandoned barn
This post really inspires! It’s full of emotion! The nature is beautiful! The house is amazing! Everyone should have its own corner where it finds its peace!
What a cool post and this is so Inspiring, I love to read more about this
Abandoned homes give me the creeps too, lol. I’ve always love rural decay though and often stop to take photos of abandoned home, churches and barns.
This post really spoke to me, as I sit in the corner of our old love seat, in my old house, contemplating the conflict between my desire to roam and my love for this place. WOnderful quotes and thoughts. Thanks.
I can also imagine the struggle. 🙂 TY!
What a sweet post! I can imagine the story of the house. The good news is that they won on a lottery and just left everything they had and took the first flight to paradise!😂 The bad news is…I dont want to write about it as it scares me!👻
Who knows…
I was the same I always saw abandoned houses as creepy as well but like you said changing your perspective can help you see things differently. I like that you now see them in a different light and maybe I should too!
Join me Ana! 🙂
That poem by Donald Benson Blanding is so beautiful and apt for anyone who’s dreaming of owning a house, like me. Abandoned houses always fascinate me of the glorious past they might have had, and the not-so-glorious present they do have.
True… yes the poem is perfect. 🙂
I love how a simple word “corner” is interpreted. I come to realize myself that corner is anything that connotes territory, ownership, niche, comfort zone, or haven.
So true… it is rich with meaning after all
Interesting choice of finding a corner. Regarding your story of abandoned places, I have wondered once when I was in China through a tunnel still under construction and I ended up into an abandoned village. It was such an amazing experience as if felt like the people left without taking anything with them. Even the hats were still in the hangers, outside the houses surrounded by waist tall grass, all dusty.
Now that would spook me out… sudden exits.
Corner can mean two things. One is a private nook where we can live our dreams. Another is feeling that you are trapped and cannot do anything anymore. Always live for the first meaning.
Aha! Feeling trapped lately Fred? 🙂
Ik ts quite difficult when you get restricted by only taking the shots of one particular thing. but i must say did an amazing job. The photographs look amazing
Thank you!
What a great way to photograph the things that are very real and around us all the time. Not just the pristine.
Hahaha Good point.
I love the motivational quotes beginning the article. Abandoned houses or streets, they all give me super creeps but I love photographing them
Good for you!
I have always admired old barns and houses that were so full of life at one time and the stories that the walls would be able to tell. The rust to me is like icing on a cake as it shows the years that they have stood doing their job and now yet left all alone
That is impressive Angie! You have a good eye, 😉
Your tip for this week is actually very important to me. ” Carve out your corner in life and follow it bravely. ” I needed to be reminded of it, because you have to keep going, you cannot stop and you have to do it bravely at that! Thank you very much for sharing.
I’m glad you liked that tip.
I always feel a little sad when I see homes like this, I’m sure it used to be filled with love and hope. This post has given me some serious food for thought here, thank you x
I feel the same way and it carries over for me. That is why I haven’t always been a fan of abandoned homes.
This old barn reminds me the shed that sat across the street of my great grandparents house. It was my great grandfathers work shed and it always gave me the creeps. But now I wonder what it was really like before it got worn. I seen old photos of it and it looked like a wonderful place to sit and do a hobby.
Amazing quote. We are made to collaborate with one another.
Indeed… it keeps the world going round and round.
I love old abandoned house, barns, schools and standing building really, I see them a lot where I live. I sit a ponder the thoughts of what it wants was and how it became the way it now. I think they are absolutely beautiful.
I think it looks rather beautiful. I wonder what stories this house could tell, I wonder what creatures it now provides a self shelter for? And like you, I wonder what this house/barn meant to its original owner. It is in such a lush and vibrant green surrounding, really quite beautiful!
Rural houses are so mystical and feel like home even for a city girl like me. I do like the house you have chosen as well as bitter sweet poem