Yesterday, I spent the afternoon reviewing Brian's photographs, immersed in his landscapes. Seeing so many of them together was almost like taking a journey with him. Afterwards, I was scheduled to drive an hour and half to a remote high school, to watch my son's team play basketball. I was tired and not looking forward to it.
I live in a landscape that I happen to know Brian liked quite a bit, he photographed in New Mexico often for J Jill. Coming from upstate New York, like Brian, I never could imagine living in the desert. But I have grown to love the color brown, not just brown but sage and sand and adobe and rammed earth and terracotta flying by the car window. And I have come to appreciate open space; highways that disappear into a faraway blur of dust. Though I forget to look out my windshield on a regular basis, being consumed with the grocery list or how fast I need to get from point A to point B.
But soon after getting in the car, I began to think about Brian's upcoming cross-country trip. And for the next hour and a half I remembered how much fun it is to just get in the car and drive. I felt like I was in high school again. But instead of the green trees of upstate New York, there was the sun setting over a giant mesa, the San Felipe Casino with the crazy neon sign, the crossing over the Rio Puerco (pig river! my favorite), tribal lands, trailer parks, a church with a silver dome made out of tin foil. I wondered which things would catch Brian's eye, if he had been in the seat next to me. I understood completely what a blast it is going to be for him to get out again in the landscape he loves. And I couldn't wait for him to be able to get in the car, and just drive.
Jeane
This post is just a taste of the inspiration this project is bringing to those who choose to be part of it. Please feel free to join in and have your eyes opened in a new way. This journey is not just about Brain Trauma, it is about opening everyone up to the unlimited creations that are here and you are part of. CM