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Photo by Jacki |
Six years ago one of my dear soul friends came for a visit and like all of her visits, she came with her camera strapped over her shoulder. She loves photography and there are very few moments where I can remember seeing her without her faithful machine ready to give us glimpses of the world as she sees it.
She has an eye for angles. She sees angles I just can't find. She sees colors, streams of light, gestures of the body, tilts of a blossom, expressions of humanity that tell a story of the goodness available and intended for the world. The images she records with her camera are more than the stunning portrayal of a fleeting moment, they are bread crumbs leading hearts back sources of abiding joy. Rivers of new life in a dessert of scheduled smog, and daily mundane.
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Photo by Jacki |
The thought of her without a camera made my heart ache. It would be like taking my right hand so that I could no longer paint. A piece of her soul would be couped up inside her, unable to fly to the depths and heights that it longed for, unable to visit the places where it belonged. The wholeness of life that she was able to experience and share through her lens should not be stopped by this mishap at the airport.
It seemed like the most obvious thing I could ever do- I wrote her a check. I couldn't afford a whole camera and new lenses either, but I could give her something to put towards a new camera. When my mom heard the tale, she too sent my friend a check. Later, I found out that we were two of many people who heard of the death of her camera and immediately sent her some funds to buy a new one. I know that the truth that motivated me was the same powerful force that motivated her loved ones. We all believed she could not be without a camera.
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Photo by Jacki |
I need to continually update my website and social media. I need to appropriately document my artwork and take good enough photos to be able to make prints someday. I would love to eventually be able to make video lessons and demos for my students. All of this will take a good camera. I thought it would probably be the end of the year before I could afford to buy a nice one that could fill this need.
She started to smile and said, "Well, this is perfect."
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Photo by Jacki |
I never occurred to me that this was a gesture that would come back to me. I didn't even think about the "return" on such a gift. It was not even a gift to me- it was necessary. It was obvious that she HAD to have a camera and if I could help to make that happen then that is what I must do. A dozen people gave generously, and the gifts of that camera have been given back to us over and over again as we devour her photos and enjoy her homemade cards.
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Photo by Jacki |
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Photo by Jacki |
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