There are some very large letting goes to do:
people, places, honeyed and battered phases of life
there are some even larger letting goes to do:
anger, tears, parts of yourself that leave with no return.
have a past.
Everything that’s happened cannot be held today- Cleo Wade
I’ve lost count of the times I’ve photographed this dying tree. In some ways, it’s become my muse. On misty mornings, while faster things work to be settled, the birds, the air, the traffic from the highway, this tree is resolute. How is it weathering this? What changes has it made? Is it somehow thriving towards the end, despite the sharpness of the natural spire, that grows thiner and less dense each year? My gaze hits it often in mornings I feel frantic, needing to know it hasn’t fallen in the night. That, despite the decay, it’s still standing, doing its thing.
Sleepless, but with a silver lining.
Wild and wonderful and full.
Constant motion, and a never ending supply of feelings from moment to moment.
Photographing a family with young children is dynamic, and silly, and physical in the best way.
Thank you Gill Family, for letting me be a part of this sweet season of your lives.
On Fire
August, the month of fires. A fire burned in us to capture everything left of summer, pull it towards us, and never let go. We were outside as much as possible, as much as the air quality would allow. We had a dog get super sick on us, we bought groceries, we stressed, we worked, we parented, we drank coffee of course. Life happened.
And fires, in our state, to the North in Canada, to neighboring states in the south and to the east. So much has burned this year. And it continues.
I worry that one of these years it’ll touch our city. Will it be a nudge, or a full on assault? They say so much land along the west coast just needs to burn. That the population here has left forests who once regulated themselves through burning, out of whack. Its understandable. And with the change in our climate, there are conditions where fire would be (and currently is) devastating. The human desire to exist and live in beautiful places isn’t wrong, but these consequences are hard to watch.
And ideas, spreading like fire. Good ones, and some really bad ones. Ignited, people are acting on these ideas, horrendous things are being said and done. A lack of empathy seems to have caught hold of so many, too. And I worry how long that particular fire is going to burn.
So everything around us feel like kindling. And what can be done? You douse things with as much watery love you can, donate your extra garden hose, manage your own fires so surrounding growth stays healthy. You hope, once the heat is over, things can calm down and you are able to breathe again. And in the interim, you learn to breathe smoke.
Fire is a powerful, destructive force. But it can also be a catalyst for change, and even more beautifully, regeneration. I hope we start to see more of the later.
