Lens-Artists Challenge #90 – Distance

BLUE AND GREEN AND WHITE

“From a distance the world looks blue and green, and the snow-capped mountains white….”

Julie Gold

These days, everyone’s talking about and hopefully practicing “Social Distancing”. Since it’s something we should all be doing, we thought a challenge focused on DISTANCE might be an appropriate reminder of its importance. For today’s quotes I’ve chosen lines from Bette Midler’s 1990 Grammy-winning release “From A Distance”. Although the song is often attributed to Ms. Midler, who made it famous, it was actually written by Julie Gold.

SOCIAL DISTANCING – OCEAN AND STREAM

“From a distance the ocean meets the stream…”

Julie Gold

Although nearby Charleston is in Lock-down, here on the island we are still doing voluntary Social Distancing. Many of our friends around the country, and blogging friends around the world, are facing various levels of constraint. My husband, our friends and yours truly have been adhering strictly to the rules. All of our meetings have been canceled and video conferencing has become a poor but better-than-nothing substitute for personal connection. Zoom, House Party, and Skype are quite popular although I’m sure there are other products out there. I’ve had more texts and email from friends and family in the past two weeks than in the past two years. Thank goodness we live in an age of technology.

EAGLE IN FLIGHT

“And the eagle takes to flight.”

Julie Gold

Most local facilities are closed except our grocery, gas station and pharmacy. Our local doctor has temporarily suspended treatment of patients who are not ill and has installed a tent behind his office for seeing those who are. We are fortunate to live in an area where there is opportunity for outdoor activity that offers the ability to maintain distance. Our beach is wide and sparsely populated, a bicycle path runs the 10-mile length of the island, and our golf courses remain open, at least for now.

EARTH’S BOUNTY

“From a distance we all have enough and no one is in need.”

Julie Gold

Groceries are a bit of challenge although the stores are continually replenished. Many, including our grocery and Costco, are now offering seniors-only hours. Locally, a security guard is checking age IDs. Personally I’m more than happy if someone doesn’t believe I’m 60+. I do, however, take exception to the term “elderly” 😊. Several of our local restaurants are offering take-out, delivery and/or curbside service. It’s a nice way to augment home-cooked meals as well as support local businesses trying to generate income and retain their employees.

BIG INSTRUMENT

“From a distance we are instruments, marching in a common band.”

Julia Gold

Bottom line; we are all in this together despite needing to avoid each other physically. Please share with us the creative ways you’ve found to address your need to connect while keeping your distance. Have you found interesting and productive ways to pass the time? Are you enjoying comics/funny stories or do you find the situation too serious for jokes? The Lens-Artists team hopes our weekly challenge brings at least a small opportunity to look away from the news for a bit to connect with the rest of us. We look forward to hearing your thoughts and seeing your Distance images – whether related to the COVID-19 crisis or not. Be sure to link to my original post, and to use the Lens-Artists TAG. If you’re interested, give a listen to Bette’s version of “From A Distance” here. Its message is one we can all appreciate, especially in these troubled times.

Many thanks to Amy for last week’s beautiful A River Runs Through It challenge. Have you seen these?

In his Pictures Without Film post, Ken shares his perspective on helping each other through today’s challenges.
We welcome Kelly of Compass and Camera, who shares her visit to beautiful Bella Coola in Canada
Sandy’s Out of Her Write Mind shares peaceful monochrome river views along with her as-always lovely verse.

I’ll close with a quote from Donna Lynn Hope that I came across while working on another project. I thought it was particularly appropriate for the current environment:

“I don’t cry because we’ve been separated by distance…because for as long as we share the same sky and breathe the same air, we’re still together.”

We hope the challenge offers a moment of peace in an otherwise troubled world, and that you’ll join us next week for Patti’s Challenge #91. Until then, stay safe and stay calm. This too shall pass.