It is with a heavy heart that I begin 2011's posts. I personally feel estranged from my creative force. Since i lost my camera a year ago this has been a common reality......so I begin to write.

I learned tonight of a friend's commencement with his cancer battle. The last time I saw him he had a quiet pain in his eyes that i did not sense the depth of. I feel lucky to have known him and deep sorrow for his young family. He was expected to struggle, but many of us hoped he would win, which maybe in the end he did.

It is a wake up call for me. Death will come closer now. I have known people who have died in the past, but they have been distant, largely. This hits much closer and feels a bit like a fire cracker which scribes in smoke, " live your life, love your family and friends, cherish each day you have with them!". There is no time for excuses. Death claims even the sweetest souls.

I imagine a spiral, made of little river stones. They sweep in and with time some of them go missing. The lines are broken, the spiral is not wholly complete anymore. We are left with memories where flesh once stood. I now retreat to my world of snowflakes. Each one is different, I love each and every one of them.