well that was exhausting

It all started at a rehearsal

in late February, and we all know what happened after that.

I had the honor of photographing three performances at UMASS in late February. A few of the performers seemed a little under the weather, coughing. But at that point, I didn’t really think much of it. I was more or less alone for most of it during the dress rehearsals anyway.

By the time I finished editing the music pictures, it was well into March. I realized how fortunate I was to be in the presence of such art. Live music coming from beautiful instruments. The talented trained voices of the Magic Flute. In fact, I then realized that the most important things are art, love and health.

A few days later, I had a job photographing a team of employees at a local non-profit, ICA Group. As you can see, everyone seemed very care-free. This was the beginning of March. In fact, I was helping with styling, touching people’s hair, etc.

I’d also photographed a headshot for an individual, a young Luciano Pavarotti:

Late February portrait.

At some point, we learned that we couldn't live as we normally do. A very kind man contacted me on the phone. He needed a picture. So I met him in the park. We stood several feet away from each other. It seemed okay.

And now here we are. Some of us are working from home trying our best not to lose productivity. Some of us are medics and store workers going into battle every day.  Some of us are working from home and trying to home school our kids. Some of us had to come home early from college and leave our friends. Some of us are laid-off. Some of us are trying to start a new business, but we don't know when that business will have an economy to stand on. Some are nearing retirement, looking at our dwindling savings. Some are still employed, but waiting for the pink slips. Some of us are ill to begin with, and have this added fear of contracting the virus. Some of us live alone and don't want to be alone. Some of us wished we lived alone. Some of us have lost loved ones and couldn't even say goodbye.

I'm not sure which of these scenarios best describes your situation. My situation is that I lost a loved one, my father, and couldn't say goodbye in person. And at the same time, the singer Bill Withers died. It's such a cliché but his song Lean on Me couldn't possibly be more relevant right now. At this time, people have reached out to me by messages, phone, and mail. This support has literally held me up from falling down. This period in time is crazy. People don't even know how hard it is because we're all just trying to cope. I hope that we can continue to lean on each other and call each other. Be well.