Pipe Creek, TX
2020-03-21

For the last week or so I have been trying to figure out what to write.

At first Kim and I thought that we would just figure out ways to make this self isolation thing creative and yes, maybe even a little fun. All of my spring art shows have been canceled, which is the bulk of our income, but still we reasoned that we had enough to live simply but comfortably at our home. So we made of list of all of the activities and projects that we have been putting off. I then ran off to the store to buy the materials to complete them, including a weight bench (all of the gyms were now closed), and Kim bought extra art supplies, as her art classes were also canceled.

I was going to write something flippant and even funny about how we were coping with it all. Maybe even a photo of us lounging in the sun, and drinking margaritas in the afternoon. Then a few days ago we decided to take a drive in the county and walk along the Medina River in Bandera–one of our favorite places. As we walked along we came to the realization that EVERYTHING is going to change. Would the world take this do-over to make this a kinder-gentler planet, or would we slide in to tribalism and each take our own sides against the “rest?” It’s too early to tell, but I have faith in us that it will be the former.
In August of 1978 the city of Bandera got 14 inches of rain. Fifteen people died, and many of the Cyprus trees, some hundreds of years old, were swept away. Years later a local artist decided to make something beautiful out of the devastation. Below is a picture of Kim standing next to one of them.

I might just keep up this blog as a way to show how we are coping, and from time to time even post a few of my arty photos. Hey, it’s not like I have anywhere else to show them now that all of my camera clubs have also been canceled. This is a time for family and friends, which is all that actually looks at this blog anyway.

So good luck to all of us. Stay strong and healthy and connected.