Two days into the seven day black and white photo challenge, and I already was tweaking the rules. Instead of posting the requisite one photo, I posted these two together. I simply had to, and perhaps, the rest of the story will explain why.
These pictures were taken on a gorgeous fall morning on my way home from a Pilates class. This stretch of road is lined with majestic trees and wooden farm fences that are in stark contrast to the vast estates they wrap around. Although I do not live on this road, it is part of my life, as I travel it weekly.
While it is not my cherished River Road, it still is special to me. As soon as I turn onto this road, I feel at home. Its wooded areas, large, rolling fields, wooden fences, and two lanes are quintessential representations of Kentucky. It is quiet, peaceful, and beautiful, and driving along it is such a simple pleasure.
As I drove home, I was feeling a bit sad and pensive. Almost as if on cue, Pearl Jam’s song, Long Road, came on the radio and became the perfect soundtrack for this part of the drive. It is a song of grief and loss, and as each note played, tears filled with my own losses began to fall slowly down my cheeks.
In the past few years, I have experienced the loss of my grandmother and two very dear friends, in addition to the parting of ways with my person. That morning, my heart ached for each of them, and I felt inordinately alone.
While they each have been absent from my life for varying periods of time, I have yet to find the period of time that heals all wounds. On that drive, listening to that song, I craved their presence and was overwhelmed by the finality of their absences. Loss is part of life, and at times, like that day, it was captured in the falling leaves, my falling tears, and the rise and fall of Eddie Vedder’s voice.
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