Prayers for Kyushu and Ecuador

Dear Diary,

I heard of the twin earthquakes in Japan this past weekend which were quickly eclipsed by the devastation in Ecuador.  Until last night, I had not realized that the Japan quakes were centered on the southern island of Kyushu.  I stayed there in 2007 with a lovely family as part of my Fulbright partnership with Japanese educators.  I pray that that wonderful family is safe.

I made these photographs in Kyushu and the one above is my icon of the experience.  It hangs in my hall, a constant reminder of that beautiful country and its wonderful people.  I was only working in monochrome then.  It is good to look back at ones work from the distance of time to see where you were and what your vision was.

My extra photograph is of a Buddhist shrine on Kyushu that I spent some time photographing.  The light and shapes were stunning.  I am still very drawn to architecture.  We all evolve in our photographic endeavors and passions but some things stay core to our artistic vision.

My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Kyushu and Ecuador as they struggle to recover from the destruction and I will always remember the kindness my host family showed me while I was there.  He brought me to Nagasaki and I had a profound and lasting experience there at the site.  Some memories stay vivid no matter how much time passes...that is one of them for me.