Today at church I was distracted and unsettled; not that I am always particularly attentive at Mass, but I was struggling more that usual to understand the nature of my discomfort and anxiety. It was more than just a lack of centering time, reflective time; it was a deeper sense of missing--someone, something. Looking around the church, it hit me: most everyone in church had extended family near by, close friends, most likely people they had known for years and years. My wife and I, although we have lived in the States for over 20 years, have two great sons, many friends, and with family three hours drive away, we are in many ways still separated from those we love in a way that many of our neighbors are not.
I guess this is why images of solitude and empty surroundings ----- images without people -----resound the most with me. I thought at first they captured my need for solace and quiet from the very busy life I lead, but the more I think about it, the more I believe the capture the loneliness, the constant aloneness I feel. Many of them appear to be taken just after people left, leaving vague after images of their presence, more felt than seen.
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