A year of self #31 – Heart Study

From front to back this photograph shows:

1. The necklace given to me by my daughter. With rare exception, I am never without it. She is my heart, and this necklace is my talisman.

2. The bump in my left breast bone caused by my enlarged heart from my congenital heart defect. A fact of life I live with every day.

3. The lump of my pacemaker resting on my left breast bone and which quietly allows me to live a life wherein I am not in danger passing out every time I pick up my walking pace.

My Hands

I have my mother’s hands. Strong, peasant stock. I’ve always been a bit self-conscious of them. With my short, crooked, bony fingers, I’ll never be a hand model. But last Mother’s Day, my daughter wrote something very special for me and I’ve never looked at my hands with loathing again. I’ve combined her words with a self-portrait I shot this past weekend.

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