Back in the Light

Over the last dozen or so years I've taken hundreds, maybe thousands of pictures of musicians. As photographs go,

this one is far from perfect - I was caught off guard and it's poorly lit and cluttered with microphones - but still it's the only one that nearly made me cry. It's one of those moments when the stage becomes secondary and the emotion between two old friends shows its face despite the audience and the cameras and the chatter.

God gives, but if you misuse, He can take away. A wildly talented and successful singer and songwriter in Nashville can trip and fall and wake up homeless, hungry and broke, living on streets that show no mercy for his plight and no appreciation of his gifts. It's a hard fall into the shadows - family is lost, friends give up, guitars are pawned, reclaimed, and pawned again - days and nights blur into years of lost time and hopelessness. Nobody knows you when you live day to day and wake up under a bridge on a cold, rainy Nashville morning. You might sell your soul for a hot shower and a fix or a drink but even a shave is out of reach until you're ready to climb up and out and even then it's a long haul back to the light - the climb is treacherous with missteps and backsliding on every level. Not many make it and even when you're back on firm ground you can hit a rough patch and lose your footing again. And then, a friend extends a hand, a woman offers forgiveness, an audience celebrates your return - someone in the crowd shouts out Welcome home! and suddenly you're back in the light with a clear mind and a grateful heart and you decide to stay.

That's the story behind this one, very imperfect photograph - a small moment between old friends, a moment when the music begins to play again and the lyrics make sense again.

You've been in the shadows a long time, old friend. Welcome back into the light.