Lingering
My neighborhood recently hosted a little summer concert series, and it has been altogether lovely. Aside from being a neat way to connect with the community and the arts, it has also instilled an overarching sentiment—the celebration of lingering. In fact, during more than one of these gatherings, the featured musician took the time to highlight a Richmond organization, First Creatures. Specifically, they promoted this group’s work and mission, which is as stated: “First Creatures provides inspiration and moral support for lingering through a podcast as well as concerts, events, and other kinds of gatherings in Richmond, Virginia (1).”
Summer Neighborhood Concerts | Elizabeth Owens, harpist/vocalist | Richmond VA, 2025
Thus, just as “‘theme and variation’ is a popular musical form in which a composer states a melody and then repeats it several times with changes to create more interest and variety (2)”, the concept of lingering became a prominent common thread running through my summer.
So what does it mean to linger? The standard Merriam Webster definition of lingering (3) comes with a twinge of sadness—as it describes a sense of residual consequences with eventual impermanence (apt for describing the leftovers of a painful break-up). Is there potential for lingering to hold a more positive connotation? I would gather that First Creatures intends to emphasize lingering as a favorable experience—much like marinating, taking the time and patience to slow down a process for an optimally savory result.
All this to say, the thesis for my inaugural blog post is: I am contemplating what it means to metaphysically savor and attempting to put into words an explanation for what inspired me to start this site.
In many ways, at least for me, the art of lingering and savoring the seasons of life conflicts with the ever-evolving world of social media. [As an interjection, yes, I was born before social media, and my first phone in high school was a slide phone.] Admittedly, I have “grown up with” social media and have often found myself at odds with it. Certainly, I’m not here to get on any soapbox or make stereotypical assumptions about you and your relationship with social media. It’s mostly these matters of personal conundrum that I wish to articulate.
I find that participating in social media perpetuates the murky dilemma of debating my own intentions for utilizing social media (is this a paradox? asking for a friend). Of course, social media is one form of digital community that provides opportunities for new connections and collaborations. It can be fun. It can be inspiring. I especially love seeing the art my friends and colleagues are creating—connecting with medical and science illustrators from all over. However, it is also a sort of rat-race mired with cleverly targeted algorithms, echo chambers, self-esteem attacks, and generally a garden to sow ‘the grass is greener on the other side’ mentalities (sigh). So who am I to add to this battlefield (apologies for indulging in a bit of melodrama there)?
Overall, I never want to make the pretentious assumption that people want to see my work and photos. I also do not want to assume that sharing ‘photography’ on social media in any way makes me a photographer. I truly only understand some basics of camera work. There is a lot I do not know, and I often struggle to articulate anything that I do actually know.
However, I do know that photography provides me a creative outlet beyond my daily work and pursuits as an illustrator. It is a medium for me to capture delight in seasons, colors, loved ones, experiences, and this time I have been given here on earth. In a way, it has become my way of practicing lingering. And now, why the blogging? I also find writing to be another form of exploring creativity outside of the visual arts. Written communication is something I truly appreciate (4). Writing emails—I love composing emails (this is sincere, not sarcasm). Long texts—I really try to restrain myself from overwhelming you with high word count messaging (5). Plus, as an aside, I minorly yearn for the ability to italicize over text message. Love letters—currently open to suitors anytime someone feels so inclined (only, maybe, partly, joking).
My hope is for this site to be a place where I can give these creative pursuits a proper home largely outside of social media. I hope that this reminds me to slow down, marinate, and appreciate new morning mercies (6). I intend that, even if no one reads or sees anything I put here, I will still be pleased. Although if you happen to read this and find yourself genuinely interested… The door is always open. I am excited about the idea of sharing this place; send me your thoughts, words,
and photos.
I leave you with this: let's catch up; let’s linger together. I would love to hear about the seasons you are experiencing.
À bientôt (7),
Mia
FOOTNOTES
First Creatures *disclaimer: I have not listened to their podcast
Not proclaiming to be a professional writer or poet by any means.
Although I would consider myself to be an avid reader.The word count for this post not including the image caption or
footnotes: 812French meaning “see you soon”. I miss learning French and I am really
rusty. Though, I did listen to French music while working on this!