From Jeff’s house in Washington, I headed south via train to Portland to see my friend and mentor, Charlie. He guided me through my highschool years and was a heavy influence in the way I live my life today. He and I have lived parallel lives. I in Chile, he in Turkey. We both found life and love and attempted to bring it back to the United States.
He and I planned to play frisbee golf during a total eclipse, and I wanted to give him a print of the Cactus and Owl in the middle of it. While the sun faded, and the world embraced a weird temporary darkness, he revealed he had recently divorced.
I’d always seen this picture to represent a broken home. I don’t know why I had it in my hand that day, but it seemed fitting to give to Charlie right then.
I was lucky to catch Charlie during a time of his life where he was changing and evolving. During these times, we have the unique opportunity to look back and consider a version of ourselves that once was, and use that to build and look forward towards a version we want… a version we need