Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

The Visitor

My friend Julie Scully is an amazing macro photographer.

I’ve bought a matted print of this photo and I adore every part of it.  Jules has just started selling her artwork at Red Bubble – if you’re interested, you can view some of her other photos here.

I’m astonished at how perfectly formed this delicate creature is – from the ridges on his antennae to the intricate lacework of the wings with their downy covering of hair.  I absolutely adore the reflection of his feet on the glass and the way he appears motionless while the rest of the world whizzes past.  And I love the detailing in his exoskeleton – the hard luminescent framework latticed protectively over the soft yellow body.

Julie spent the better part of a day capturing the essence of a tiny creature, barely millimetres in length, that the rest of us would probably have squashed without a second thought.  If she hadn’t taken the photo, I would never have known how truly beautiful this little insect is.  How many billions of wondrous things am I taking for granted every day?

The Visitor will have pride of place in our hallway – a daily reminder to observe the world with greater reverence and awareness.

. . . . .

There are only two ways to live your life.  One is as though nothing is a miracle.  The other is as though everything is a miracle.

Albert Einstein