The church in this tiny town was locked; that gave me time to explore the churchyard, where I found a ring with a heart-shaped stone hung over the statue’s thumb.

On a side note, sometimes I feel sorry for people who take the fastest route somewhere and who don’t deviate from the plan and who arrive somewhere in a “normal” amount of time: they miss stuff like this. I am speaking as a former take-the-quickest-route person who took great pride in beating my own records at getting where I was going, so I know for sure Previous Me wouldn’t have found this town, this church, or the ring.

San José, New Mexico
photographed 8.31.2024