Summers of the Past

When there was yellow. When there was color. When this muddy gray didn’t cover everything. When we were happier. When smiles and laughter came easier. When we didn’t have a new worry everyday.

I see in color. Some photographers see in black and white. I’m having a hard time seeing color. Things seem muted. Trees seem sad. Flowers are gone.

Talking to friends finds us all lethargic. Struggling. Trying, but not achieving. Days get away from us. Hours are still meaningless. The only way to measure time is by the season. By nature.

I wish that we lived some place with seasons. At very least we could see and feel the passing of time. The only way to tell down here in my swamp is when the air gets a little cooler and less humid.

Anticipation. Election time. Pandemic time. Protest time. Disaster time. Climate changing. Violence time.

All those worries.

Which do we pick? Which do we try to forget? What happens next?

It’s all too much.

Sometimes.

I’m having a terrible time making meaningful photographs. I keep going because that’s the only way through. I don’t know what through means. Or, where I come out. What will I be?

That’s all for today. I really dislike waking up to greet the new day with all of this swirling through my head and soul.

Sunflowers. This is a picture that I made in New Mexico a while back. Many people are posting sunflowers on various socials. I like that, so I’m following along.

I like yellow. In the commercial printing world, it’s a brightener. In the world, it’s a happy color.

If you read the other column you know I think the world is currently looking like shades of gray. Deep gray.

That’s why I decided to publish this picture. It couldn’t be any happier if it tried. It creates smiles. It opens eyes.

Making it was easy. Find sunflowers, photograph sunflowers. In New Mexico, as there is in Mississippi, there are fields of sunflowers. Scrolling through my archives was easier than driving to, and looking for, a field in the next state.

I should listen to myself and maybe learn. Every time that I look at and work on a DSLR file, it is rich, thick, and creamy. Not so with a file made on a phone. They say that you can’t tell the difference. They are wrong. Yes. You can.

Stay safe. Stay mighty. Wear your mask.