Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Contrasts...

In times of trauma and distress we fall back on cliches. To my horror I have heard myself using them post-quakes, aware of their hollowness but at a loss for other, more meaningful words. 'Life goes on'. Indeed it does - and rather than use words I thought I would share some recent photos which contrast quake trauma (of which my photos are few and very localised) and life going triumphantly on...


Norwich Quay in Lyttelton after 22 February 2011 quake
Godley House in Diamond Harbour
Sunny day, sunny sign...
The Governor's Bay fete, just under three weeks after the quake
Bay residents relaxing at the fete
A sign on the railings in Lyttelton. I spotted this after the 22 February quake and don't know if it was there before  or if it was prompted by the quake
Four weeks on - spotted outside the old library building in Lyttelton
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6 comments:

  1. dkmMarch 16, 2011 at 6:49 AM

    Be still my soul over the Lyttelton wall and the cookie people! Such a photographer---with an eye for the poignant. Your photos tell a story that breaks and repairs my heart at once.

    Thanks for seeing the hope in my squirrel post---because I was aware of the "hollowness" of such a tiny event in the face of the disasters you and the people of Japan are managing.

    Oh so true about the cliches we rely on---perfect example: the importance of "the moment." :-) But perhaps it's more hopeful than horrifying---because at some point every cliche was an original poetic expression of a universal truth we all need to remember. Here's to the ongoing triumphant nature of life and cliche!

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  2. Jane RobertsonMarch 16, 2011 at 7:07 AM

    Oh no, there is no 'hollowness' in the squirrel story. It is the story of life itself, of survival - and it is as relevant in our current context (ChCh, Japan) as ever. More so. The small triumphs must be celebrated. The story made me smile and cry both. And I have just read something in the morning paper which had a similar effect and which I will write about, eventually...

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  3. AnonymousMarch 17, 2011 at 10:09 AM

    I'm trying to understand the sign. Is she talking about dying? Dying in the earthquake? The earthquake has brought sadness and death?

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  4. dkmMarch 19, 2011 at 5:00 PM

    Thank goodness I'm not the only one that didn't get the message on the sign!

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  5. Jane RobertsonMarch 20, 2011 at 5:10 AM

    I don't know what it means either! I just liked the idea that someone had put it up there and it was meaningful for them. I was in Lyttelton again yesterday and saw another poignant 'contrast' which I'll add to the photos.

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  6. dkmMarch 22, 2011 at 3:58 AM

    LOL about the sign :-). And the added photo is touching indeed. THAT, I get. The fortitude and creativity of the human spirit never ceases to astound me.

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