Sometimes I get a bee in my bonnet--forgive the pun--about a certain photo that I want to use in a duality. I can spent days trying to come up with a good match for it. I'll try different ideas until one finally hits me right. What I'm after is the unexpected, the surprising choice. It's a real mind-bending exercise, I can tell you. This photo of the fly in the flower proved to be one of my tougher challenges. And my finding a match ended up being pure luck.

I'd gone to the pool on Thursday with the idea of photographing one of the women floating with what's called the "noodle" under her arms. I'd hoped it would look like wings. It didn't. After swimming my laps, I got out my camera in the hopes that someone would be doing the breast stroke. I thought maybe their arms would resemble wings. But there was not a breast stroke to be seen. However, I did see Peggy right in front of me taking her ongoing swimming lessons from Tim, our lifeguard. Now, this is a senior's swim hour and Peggy is one of our older seniors. I've never asked, but I'd put her at least in her mid-70s. She could even be in her 80s. And now she's learning to swim for the first time in her life. And doing really well with it too. I thought I'd take some shots of her swimming to print out and give to her next week. The joys of finally having a photo printer!

I downloaded those photos on Thursday night, but it wasn't until I went back to them on Friday that I saw the possibility of Peggy being a match for the fly. When I'd cropped both images and lined up her arm with the fly's wing, I realized this was it. And you know, she's a match more than just visually, for Peggy does now have wings she'd never had before. She IS flying!

I dedicate this duality to Peggy and all the elders who keep growing and stretching their bodies and minds into new shapes.