simplicity

i found this barn a couple of days after the floods that devastated parts of southwest washington in december 2007. i was trapped at home due to the closure of the main interstate and most of the local roads, and was starting to get cabin fever pretty badly. So I decided to step out into the aftermath to see how life had changed for folks in the badly damaged surrounding areas...

while driving, i came upon a dead golden retriever laying on the edge of a field. i'm still not sure if this poor soul drowned in the floods, like many animals in the area, or if it had been hit by a car and moved off of the road. at any rate, an intense sadness washed over me and i was suddenly hit by the loss so many people were experiencing at that moment: loss of their home, business, livelihood, pets, livestock, family photographs and heirlooms... lives completely shattered within hours as the rain fell and the rivers rose.

it was during this moment of immense grief that i noticed the sun beginning to break through the fog, and this tree and barn came into view. i quickly pulled over to the shoulder and began shooting the scene. and as i watched the golden morning light streaming in through the blanket of gray fog, i began to smile and realized that life would go on, that not all was lost...