‘Autumn Years’

This was the first image which took my eye yesterday as I was over again at my favourite photographic venue in Chichester.

The sun was bright over the cathedral grounds where I had seen this elderly couple sit down to take a rest together; at the time all the other benches which line up were vacant but this was the bench they both obviously favoured?

Because not so many people were actually in the town at this time; the lady did at first glance somewhat cautiously in my direction. So I endeavoured to convince her that I was adjusting my cameras settings and I stared through the viewfinder at the cathedrals spire behind their bench seat position. This seemed to do the trick and she quickly returned back to the conversation with her husband.

Slowly I moved in a little closer and captured this shot of them both; which from the series of three that I captured; appealed to me the most.

They seemed such a lovely old couple. This lady with her floral headscarf tied neatly around her head clutching tightly to her handbag; and her husband wearing his classic tweed flat cap, his hands tucked deeply inside his jacket pockets to keep them warm.

They looked to be reflecting on times gone by and so would now and again look towards each other and smile knowingly. Occasionally though the lady would place her hand on top of her husbands knee and shake his leg playfully as they laughed more vigorously at something shared.

It was so obvious that these two were soul mates in every sense of the word. They had experienced both good and bad times together; and still their relationship remained as solid as it did in the beginning.

I would love to know how they met and maybe what they both did for a living. Wouldn’t that be fascinating?

If we were to look at our lives in terms of the seasons then it might be fair to assume that this lovely couple are both fully embracing the autumn of their years together? A beautiful season which many poets have written lyrically about.

One particularly memorable quote for me, the author of which is unknown states simply;

“You can’t hide your true colours as you approach the autumn of your life.”

“Discuss?”