Memphis, Tennessee

The Old Forest

Max on a trail in the Old Forest. It is a 172 acre portion of Overton Park in the heart of downtown Memphis, a piece of primeval, oak-hickory climax forest such as greeted early settlers to the area. It is somewhat of a miracle that it's here. Some city fathers did well conserving it. Tall trees with dense undergrowth dominate. When they die, their fallen trunks are allowed to lie undisturbed.

Shelf fungus on a fallen limb along one of the trails through the Old Forest. Peter Taylor wrote a wonderful story named for these woods, found in his collection The Old Forest and Other Stories.

Midtown

Max playing the electric synthesizer on his father's iPhone in front of his home in Midtown Memphis

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Historical Halloween

Each year Max's school holds an event called Historic Halloween. All the students dress as the historic character of their choosing and recite a short biography of him or her. In this picture you can see two Clara Bartons, Ludwig Von Beethoven, Sequoyah (originator of the Cherokee alphabet), David Mccauly (author of how things work), Louis Pasteur and Sacajawea (Indian guide for the Lewis and Clark Voyage of Discovery).

Max portrayed Alfred Wegener, the arctic explorer who fully developed the theory of Continental Drift. Note the background. What a view the school has.

Julie, left, with her daughter Milla. Julie is a long-time friend of Max's mom and a teacher at his school.

Photographs taken with a Leica M8