HN PHOTOS: Met Mary while the sailors took warning…

[HN NOTES]

“Red sky at night, sailors delight; red sky in morning, sailors take warning,” is an old adage my dear mom used to repeat in the days when dad worked as a skipper on one boat, and I, a deckhand on another, out of Hyannis Inner Harbor. A long, long time ago…

I’m a big fan of light (it’s a photojournalist thing). And, for several fleeting moments, this morning’s sky was glowing a stunning, bright hazy red. So, I quickly pulled over, switched to a new 50mm lens I’ve been trying to break in, and started strolling along Main Street, Hyannis, near the 500 block. It was there I noticed a special, unusual reflection, the red sky bouncing off the bricks opposite the sun rising on the other side of the street.

No longer interested in the actual sky, I spun around and noticed this wonderful woman in a yellow hoodie, seated inside The Daily Paper with her breakfast. The sunrise giving the bricks a special hue. The Christmas wreaths, red and green with frosted pine cones. I had to have it – *snap!* Got it!

And then this lovely woman briefly stepped out the restaurant door, away from her morning job, to capture the beautiful sky on her cellphone. *Snap!*

“Are you taking my picture?” she asked.

“Yes, I am… What’s your name?”

It was then I met Mary, who has been working at this very same restaurant for over 20 years. In fact, it was her very first job when she moved here from Brazil. It was called another name then… now, it’s The Daily Paper.

We had an enjoyable, brief conversation in English, Spanglish (Mary’s husband is a native Spanish speaker) and a couple of Portuguese phrases I threw in for good measure, despite Mary’s perfect English. We had some things in common. Mary also immigrated here and became a naturalized citizen, just like my dear mother – a long, long time ago…

… and as the special red glow dissipated, Mary had to return to work. But not before I managed to talk her into posing for a quick snapshot, and a little of the red glow still came through (see top photo). Sailors take warning!

Amazing smile, Mary! You made my day. Thank you! 🙂

(Rain showers VERY likely later, folks… so take warning and be extra careful out there!)

P.S. – Today’s Hytown Vignette is a brought to you by Looking Glass… [CLICK IT/CRANK IT!]