Tumacacori Mission

The missions south of Tucson were the focus of my recent travels to the Southwest.

Pictured here are the physical remains of the convent near the mission church, San Jose de Tumacacori. Nearby, there is a walled cemetery surrounded by old trees where the graves are marked with stones and dark wooden crosses. As I wandered, seeing things "rectangularly" as usual, I snapped away, picking up odd impressions.

I imagined the voices of indigenous people floating on the breeze. The old mission church bells were adding their music too, in my mind, accompanied by the chambered echo of chanting Franciscan Monks.

Wandering around this sacred site I distinctly felt their presence. In the stillness, I could almost hear a cacophonous clash of cultures emanating from the hills and the walls of the church.