It looks like I am seeing red. But it’s not just the color that brings these images together, nearly rhyming, but not quite. There are signs to welcome, signs to warn (no soliciting), signs to direct (enter). There are invitations to walk through the door, sit on the deck, and climb the stairs. The scenes are cold and yet still warm, pockets of light both inside and out. None of this occurs to me as I am taking these pictures . . .

I wonder if this is the real magic of photography. There is something about the practice that is soothing to the most rudimentary and essential parts of our brains. Maybe photography helps us to get out of our own way, releasing us from the cage of self-sabotage.

 
 
 

. . . The present has arrived
and you are in it. Your heart
is pumping. Your breath moves

in and out of your lungs without
anyone’s help or permission.
Let go of everything else. Let

your life, handed to you through
no effort of your own, be all
the proof you need. You are loved.

—What Matters, Terri Kirby Erickson

 

Because we’ve been snowed in all week, and we finally got out of the driveway and down the road a few miles . . .

Because I watched all of the wonderful Artist-in-Residence videos by Cynthia Gladis on FRAMES, while snowed in, and was inspired by her graphic design aesthetic . . .

Because I’ve had a migraine for 2 days that no medicine will touch and I thought, what the heck, maybe fresh air will help . . .

Because I get twitchy if I don’t make something at least every few days . . .

I darted across the road, through piles of snow and stood facing the school, remembering when snow days were so much fun.

I love these photos and consider them to be some of my personal best (based on some intuitive rating system that is subjectively objective at best).

I took a break from processing photos and stopped to read a newsletter from Morrow Soft Goods, New Year, Fresh Start. I was immediately drawn to their collage of softly colored photographs, a kind of inspiration board. I liked the layout and the interplay of images. The way some people love puzzles, I love to play with graphic design. I got out my ruler and measured the squares and rectangles and created my version of the layout as a template in Lightroom. Then I went searching for winter images from years past that fit with the theme, design and colors. Holy Moly, this is so much fun! I still have the dang headache, but I’ve been distracted from pain and that’s good enough.

 

My hope is that honestly conveying my feelings and leading you to feel the same through something I’ve made might just open you up.
It may help you to celebrate, or grieve, or give you resolve.
It may help you face your own confusing feelings with more courage because you know others feel just as you do.
It may help you decide to take the inward journey, work out what those emotions are pointing to, and change your life for the better by facing your fears.

—Sean Tucker, The Meaning in the Making