Each year since I’ve been back in Texas, I’m honored to cover the annual Juneteenth celebration for the Williamson County Sun.   The Georgetown Cultural Citizen Memorial Association coordinates and celebrates the day, June 19, 1865, when slaves learned of their freedom in Texas.   This year marks the 65th year Juneteenth was commemorated in Georgetown.   The San Gabriel Community Center, a sweet respite from the oppressive Texas heat, was a good place to be.  The first photo shows the 6-year-old daughter of a Georgetown City Council member helping her good friend, also 6, get the words right to what’s called the Negro National Anthem.  Note that I don’t cotton to the word “negro,” but it was on the program so that’s that.    There was much singing, dancing, eating and visiting.   One of the highlights was a visit by 102-year-old Annie Mae Williams City, who recounted her days growing up on a farm near Belton.  “We played barefooted,” City said, but “we kept our shoes for Sunday wear.”   I present Ms. City at the conclusion of this post, in color and black and white.   She has presence.

Temperatures are approaching 100 degrees already in Central Texas.   It’s good to know we have some donkeys smart enough to seek shelter where they can.   Thank goodness for large shade trees.

Forgive me in advance, but I will often revisit favorite subjects and places.  One of them is Taylor’s St. James Episcopal Church, a beautiful structure at the corner of 7th and Main Street.   Leaving the library this evening, I was compelled to take another photo.  The play of light and shadow on its north-facing facade is soothing, at least to yours truly.

As we approach the official start of summer in the south and southwest, local folks will quickly let you know this:  summer’s been here for a while.   With that in mind, here’s some photos taken in early- June 1976 in Shreveport, Louisiana, where I lived for six of the best professional years of my life.  I liked the spirit of these bare-foot boys as they sold three flavors of Kool Aid: grape, cherry and pink lemonade, for the grand sum of a nickel.    Good times.

Flags are one of my favorite photographic subjects.  Thank goodness, then, for Flag Day in the United States.  I’d forgotten what day it was, but on my morning walk, I noticed an abundance of American flags billowing in the Texas wind at Heritage Square Park in Taylor.   Late this afternoon, I chose that park to catch up on my reading, then transition to flag photography.  After a few minutes, a group of Boy Scouts, from Taylor Troop 167, stopped by to take them down.  The flags, I’m told, were to fly from 7a.m.-7p.m.  The scouts placed the flags in the morning, too.   I’m glad I stopped by this lovely downtown park.

Norman’s Crossing is a tiny community in East Williamson County, Texas that I enjoy.   You might recall posts from there, including a former one-room schoolhouse, and a lovely pasture of horses.   In the farm country where we live, it’s also common to see family cemeteries, most often placed right next to the fields many families have tilled.  One in Norman’s Crossing I like is the Saul family cemetery.   The photos posted tonight are taken at different times this year.  My first visit there was in March.  I’ve sat on those images for while, but then last week I stopped by there again.  The bare trees of March gave way to almost-summer leaves…and a field of wheat just beyond that once-barren tree.    The passing of seasons create new landscapes for one’s pleasure.

Another event I covered last weekend was Taylor’s Lone Star Summer Grand Prix Dog Show held at the Williamson County Expo Center.   While I know little about dog shows, I do love dogs.   And it was obvious the owners love them, too.    When I asked for a dog’s name after taking photos, the usual answer was  “Do you want their show name, or what we call them?”  These are smart, well-pampered dogs.  Some of the breeds were new to me.  One thing I didn’t know:  a “heeler” is really a nickname for Australian Cattle Dogs.   I like learning these little things.   These photos were taken for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.

Since I’ve been busy this past week with non-photographic things, it’s been tough to chase the moon when it becomes fuller.  After determining that there would be a moonset, however, I rose early on this Sunday morning, a little after 6, hitting the road.   What I’d forgotten, however, was the added  presence of a sunrise.  At 6:22, the sun made an appearance, prompting a few photos.   But I still wasn’t finding a good spot to photograph the that Waning Gibbous moon.  Almost ready to bag the idea, I remembered the abandoned old farm house along a dirt road.  By 6:45, I was there, and so was my moon.  I snapped a few photos.  By 7a.m., I was on the way home.

This little festival in Florence, a small town in far north Williamson County, Texas, is a hoot.   The focal point of the two-day festival is their parade, which took place this morning along East Main Street.   For whatever reason, I missed my visit to Florence in 2016, but was happy to see a young buckaroo, Shooter, now 3, still coming with his dad.  Shooter, in the opening photos, was having some trouble keeping that hat on his head.  We do have some wind in Central Texas.   Shooter made the day worthwhile.  I liked the washer tournament, too.  It was held next to one of Florence’s vintage structures.   That building is totally covered with ivy  …. poison ivy.  Thankfully, the washer tournament officials posted warning signs.  As someone with very sensitive skin, I stayed well away from it, as did the washer competitors.   We have some interesting little burgs in Texas. 

Tonight was Georgetown’s first of free Friday night concerts on the town’s scenic square.   This evening’s entertainment was provided by Roland Waits and the Wayward Travelers.  The concerts will run throughout the summer, every Friday evening on the courthouse lawn.  It’s a great venue, for children, and adults who want to get in touch with their inner child.  Some folks got good parking places, enjoying the fun from the bed of their trucks.  These photos were taken for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.