Tuesday, May 08, 2007

The Terrible Sound of Silence

There are no photos to post tonight. Even words will have to be carefully chosen, because, whenever we lose someone in our world, it seems to me that the planet shudders. Today, here in San Francisco, we lost a special man, but beyond that there is little I can write at this hour. His family is in shock, the rest of us are in shock, and out of respect for their privacy, there is nothing else I can say, for now.

Once I heard the sad news, I immediately recalled coming out of the church in East Lansing after my own mother's memorial service in October 2002. Above me, the tree branches seemed restless, their leaves fluttered sadly. I pointed my camera upwards and shot that scene -- a photo I treasure. Every time I look at it, I revisit the sweet sadness of knowing I had to let my mother go. That tree seemed to reflect her departing spirit.

Tonight, a fog descended over the peninsula that contains San Francisco. We've lost a valuable soul. It is still hot here, but cooler than last night, when this special man was still among us, the living...

Tonight, he is not. And we are all the poorer for having lost him.

-30-

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