2020 brought an Easter like no other in my lifetime or very few of you either, I presume. In forcing ourselves to remain apart, we have grown more anxious to be together. We miss that subconscious bond that God built into us that we fail to admit is there or simply don’t want to acknowledge because we all want to appear stronger than we really are. I have always enjoyed being away from the madding crowd, often riding my bike into the woods above Scranton but I am willing to admit my yearning to be in contact with the human race again. In the course of this life lesson, I developed an ability to notice things. Now, I notice faces; HUMAN FACES in everything I see in nature!
This image (see media below showing how) was composited from a photograph I took of a rock at one of my favorite places where I ride because when I look at this rock it has a calming effect on me. I sense someone is there and feel a presence that is hard to describe. Then yesterday, a day I would normally be photographing religious events for hours, I looked at the rock again and this appeared in my mind. A sudden flash of Christ on the cross giving himself up for us all. And I realized though I hate what is going on in our country right now it was all pre-ordained for a specific purpose. One we will not fully understand until it is resolved, we look back and realize what is real and what is fake. This image is admittedly fake, done with Photoshop-like so many public images are that create a feeling of inadequacy in many of us but much to the contrary, this one evokes a simple message of sacrifice. The sacrifice so many are making for us right now. Thank you, thank God for you!
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Here is a screenshot video of the retouching process:
Here is the original image at my Fortress of Solitude:
