In an old journal, I found the following words. Perhaps one day I will polish them, but even a bit rough, I feel inclined to share them, paired with some new images. I suppose I should be sharing a poem, given that it’s Put a Poem in Your Pocket Day, but perhaps there is poetry embedded in these words and images.
Journal Entry: Several friends think that I never go to the dark places. That I always see the light in the world. The glass is always at least half-full. Lemons can always be turned into tasty lemonade. There is no dark so dense where some bit of brightness cannot be found. At such accusations, I usually say nothing or I perhaps point out the beauty of fallen petals upon the ground. I do not to say with indignation, you are wrong because I do go to the dark places. Don’t we all? I do not say, I have seen the dark clouds descend from once-bright skies and settle over once-clear roads. Haven’t we all? But, for me, you know what always happens … even upon the darkened road … eventually? Winds come and blow the clouds away. If there is a lingering dark fog, the sun rises and burns it to a cooling mist, refreshing upon the skin. When I’m in the darkest place, pitch black, I don’t always see the light but I know it’s there somewhere. It has to be. I can feel it even if I cannot see it. Don’t the blind feel the sun on their faces?
Maybe that’s why I write, why I photograph. To show that no matter how dark, light penetrates and reveals certain glories. In the contrasts, the shadows created, the silhouettes that emerge, unique beauty is revealed. That is what I want to convey, in whatever medium feels right in the moment. The simple beauty in this life.
I do not want to ignore the dark, or the fears that spring to life though I may not always share such fears with friends. I will walk the dark roads until the sun rises. I will carry a flashlight or a lit candle and if these items should fail then I will take a deep breath and raise my eyes to the sky and focus on the tiny beacons of the stars. And who knows, I might even see a sliver of moon. All I know is I may walk in the dark – we all do at some point in our lives — but I will not stay there. I will not.
Words + Images 