Remaining calm

An entire region of our country remains in the grip of the aftermath of a major storm that swept through here last weekend. As I watch the nightly news, I see a crowd of people lined up at a dumpster in NYC today to take turns going through the leftover food because they have no power and nothing to eat. On Staten Island, the bodies of two small children were found in a marsh after having been swept from the arms of their mother as she tried to get them to higher ground during the storm. 4.6 million people are still without power and it could be weeks before much of it returns.

It’s all too much, and I feel so inadequate yet at the same time so blessed to have lost no loved ones, to have enough to eat, to be able to sleep in my own bed, and most blessedly – to be able to go home. A 62-year-old woman cried on screen tonight as she said through her tears, “I just want to go home.” And she was standing on it. It was rubble beneath her feet.

Watching the news leaves me with a feeling of helplessness but I continue to watch as it breaks my heart. And later, to calm my thoughts, I work on images I’ve taken that give me a sense of peace.

I can see the house in the background and the breakfast nook.

I’ve had some of these images waiting here for the past two days but could think of nothing to say.

Do you ever get like that? Where the words just won’t come?

I took all of the photos you see here on Saturday morning before the storm rolled through. I wanted to capture the serenity I felt, and the leaves that were still on the trees. We’d had some mild weather so the morning glories were still blooming quite nicely.

You would think this was a summer photo, wouldn’t you?

The textures I used for the morning glory shots are available as a free download here:


Shadowhouse Creations October 2012 Bokeh Set


They are so pretty.

I hope that things are all right in your world.

And if they’re not, I hope that they begin to get better soon.