"Stillness”
A photo project by
Siri Brændshøi
Siri Brændshøi
From the first time I held you in my hand, I felt a connection. I took you along, and we spent so much time together. With you, I was safe. With you, I got an inner peace that no one else could give me. You were always there for me, and me only, with no questions asked. You never complained, demanded anything, and gave and gave.
With you, I could share my innermost feelings, not holding back. You got to witness a world I don’t have the words for or the courage to express with words. You gave me the words I was missing. You got to be my voice.
It gave me an inner stillness making it possible for me to take in and be amazed by the grand nature around us. You made it possible for me to enjoy life even in the darkest moments. You gave me the pauses I needed to make it through, and day after day came to be years.
Some would say you are hard and cold, but even on the coldest winter days, holding you in my hand fills me with warmth and peace, and I no longer feel the cold. As soon as I pick you up, the world around me quiets, and I go into a mindful state of mind. We are there in our own little bubble, a safe, good place to just be, a place full of feelings, a place where words are not needed.
As we walk together into the woods, mountains, and sea, the stillness of nature embraces us and opens for the possibility to just be. A place to be alone, only surrounded by the abundance of creatures that watch us with curiosity and cautiousness. It may be wet and cold, but it doesn’t matter as I’m filled with warmth and love, grateful for what nature brings.
You have shown me that even in the darkest moments, there is beauty. A beauty that can guide me forward that holds my hand. Nature gives me the stillness and courage needed for my feelings to be heard by myself. Together we can escape into a fantasy world, a place to feel better.
Light and darkness live alongside each other, as do good and hurtful feelings, and one cannot exist without the other. And with you, I got the courage to feel and see the light.
Together we stop time and explore, and through it, I’m able to move forward. What is a second becomes a lifelong journey. It becomes a consolidation of who I am and how I became, all shown in a split second.
A new world has opened in front of me, and I can feel a connection, feel a wholeness. With you, I escape what I cannot understand; together, we explore it in a safe place. For every moment we spend together, I learn more and more of myself; you opened a channel to my inner.
You gave me the gift of photography, the gift of seeing, and with it, a connection to myself and to nature, and thereby to others.
