the return of the dove

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John Everett Millais, The Return of the Dove to the Ark, 1851

I miss the afternoons in Oxford when I'd climb the steps to the third floor of the Ashmolean and sit in front of this painting for an hour or two. I just kept going back to this one, even though the air conditioner vent was right next to it and made an awful noise. Something drew me in, something about possessive hope, something like the persistent widow. Whatever that is, I want it.

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