I'm trying to respond to two challenges here--The Thursday TITC, "Good and Bad" & May's PaD theme, "The Other Side." We'll see if it works.

Regarding Thursday's Challenge theme of "Good and Bad," this image shows my sweetie taking a nap in his chair. Parked in front of him is a walker. Now, it is NOT good that Eddie needs such an assistive device--even temporarily --but it IS good that he's found this walker allows him to walk relatively pain-free. Without it he would be using my extra mobility scooter full-time. He would not be driving, nor would he be able to go to his office. By the way, Ed is mostly retired but loves to spend his days in his office so it is a great comfort for him to be there. As regular readers know, this has has been a tough week for my sweetie. Excruciating back pain put him in the hospital for two nights, and he continues to move with difficulty.

That brings me to the subject of May's PaD theme, "The Other Side." Here is a man who has always been strong and healthy, whose last hospitalization was in 1942, and whose daily three mile walk was as predictable as the sun rising in the east. At least for now, he is on the Other Side of strength and good health. But we trust he is only visiting this "Other Side" temporarily, and will soon return to the place where he belongs.

To see other PBasers' responses to the Thursday Challenge for May 15, CLICK HERE.

CLICK HERE to view others participating in "The Other Side" PaD challenge for May 2008.

Under every "reality" is a world we see only through the eyes of our imagination. Those close to the edges of life see this world most clearly. Some, like the children, are at the start of their journey. Others are at the finish. Those in the middle are the most blind. Their eyes are sealed shut by concerns that leave little room for the imagination to grow and flourish. Except for the artists. Words and dance, paint and photographs, music and rhythms unseal their eyes, allowing artists see the Other Side of reality, the only side that makes any sense at all.

CLICK HERE to view others participating in "The Other Side" monthly challenge, May 2008"

My sweetie is finally home where he belongs. Not that he's free from pain but at least he's home. These past two days and nights have shown me what's important in my life. Not photography. Not my many projects. Not even my own health issues. No, everything is colored by the presence or absence of my beloved. This house we've lived and loved in for 37 years is an empty shell of a place when Eddie's not here. And even though the hospital was only two miles from our house--two miles of streets and houses I know like the back of my hand--when I'd drive home at night leaving Eddie in that hospital bed, everything looked strange and unfamiliar. You see, I'm always the one to go flitting off on overnights and trips. Eddie's always there, my anchor, my touchstone. And now he's back home where he belongs. All's right with the world.

She's always been like that, at least as long as I've known her. Yes, there have been times when life has presented her with serious challenges, but she's never been down for long. Pat Baldwin is someone you want in a leadership position, whether you're in an organization, a neighborhood or a family. She takes care of business. And in a way that respects ALL points of views. I've admired her since we first met at St. Leo's Church back in 1991. And I've loved her and her husband Steve, sons David, Adrian and Xavier and daughter Lauren since we became close soon after meeting. So here she is now, over sixteen years later, opening a door for me, a door that I suspect is going to lead to some of the best photographic work I've ever done.

Today (Wednesday) I met with Pat at Detroit's Hannan Center for Senior Learning where she is Program Director. I told her of my wish to do a series of photos here at the center. So what did she do? She enthusiastically called her supervisor, two other social work supervisors and an intern into her office for us to brainstorm about my idea. And we're ALL excited about it!!! I told them quite honestly that I don't know how this project will evolve, all I know is that it will be about the PEOPLE rather than the place. Pat shared that she can already see me taking pictures of the 93 year-old woman who uses a walker yet is an active member of the Gardening Class. That class also has a woman from India who wears a sari while she gardens. Pat and the others also mentioned the art class, the oral history class at a nearby senior residence, the bowling class, the "hustle" dancing class and more! I feel like I've died and gone to heaven! But I want to take it slow. I want to get to know the seniors first so they'll feel comfortable with me before I start clicking away. I see this as a long-term project, as a long-term association. And I must say, it didn't hurt when I mentioned that, in addition to being a photographer, I also have a masters in social work. One more thing. My father-in-law was on the original Board of Directors that brought Hannan House into being back in 1971. The Director popped his head in as we were meeting today and said they still have a number of my father-in-law's books in the library. Ed's father passed 30 years ago this August but somehow I see his hand in this. Thanks, Papa.

I'd gotten off base. I could tell because I was comparing myself to others, and feeling lacking. I was also allowing myself to be defined by what others think of me, or what I THINK they think. This is not who I am, nor is it who I want to be. That kind of attitude only leads to unhappiness and the inability to use my gifts for the greater good. At least I didn't let it go on too long.

The light I need to shine on my work as a photographer has nothing to do with what others think of it and everything to do with my purpose in taking photographs in the first place. I take photos because that is how I see. I share them because that is how I offer my gifts to the world community. If my images impact the world for the good, that is great, but I can't know what effect they will have on others. All I can do is bring the best of myself to the process, send them out, and trust they will do whatever needs to be done. It's like having children. You conceive and give birth to them. Then you care for them and try to prepare them to take their rightful place in the world. But there comes the day when they grow up and leave home. Yes, you continue to support them but now you are no longer responsible for their actions. They must take responsibility for themselves.

And so it is with our photos. There comes the day when we must stand aside and let them do the work they were created to do. We may think we know what that work is, but we probably don't. The work is a mystery to the one who created it because the work depends on the times and circumstances in which our photographs exist. Any recognition they receive belongs not to us but to the images themselves and to the subjects that they portray. As photographers we are merely the channel through which they flow. That's why it's so important that we be as clear a channel as possible. And that's where the light comes in.

I'm off in a new direction and very excited about it! This image is one among many that came from a six-hour photo shoot I did of the kids on Thursday at the K-5 school where I volunteer in the art classes. For only the second time in my life, I played with slow shutter speeds. My hope was to find a way of expressing the amazing energy these youngsters bring to everything they do. I'll be putting up the gallery as soon as I've edited and selected the most successful of the lot.

My creative juices have really been churning since I found David Alan Harvey's blog "Road Trips" a couple of weeks ago. I think I'd mentioned that I'll be taking a six-day workshop, "The Photographic Essay," with David as part of "LOOK3: Festival of the Photograph" in Charlottesville, Virginia in early June. Not only is David Alan Harvey (DAH) a consummate photojournalist himself, but the online community he's formed through his workshops and blog is made up of hundreds of superb photographers from around the world. What I'm enjoying are their in-depth discussions about photographic ideas, issues, concepts and explorations. His blog is very interactive, often having 200 or more comments between David and his readers on just one thread. Interesting stuff! As I read the comments and looked at people's work, I realized it was time for me to stretch my wings and find more original ways of saying what I want to say photographically. That's what Thursday's slow shutter speed explorations came out of. I intend to make many such explorations from now on.