Brick and Mortar.
One of the key images that was in my mind as I was writing for 'Lest We Forget', was that of a brick wall… or, more specifically, a broken and crumbling brick wall… An image where we spread our mortar, and lay our bricks, carefully placing them side-by-side and one on top of the other, arranging them in a way that reflects our hopes and expectations for that wall... And such is life... we hope, we plan... And then, the wall crumbles... maybe we misplace a brick or two, or maybe it gets hit by an unexpected blow… bricks fall loose and our wall doesn't look the way we intended it to... and yet even amidst the crumbling debris, there is One who takes that brokenness, and shattered expectations and re-builds it into something beautiful and life giving... my hope is that these songs reflect the color and beauty that can shine through the broken… And even as we come to the eve of the release of this album, I do so with a deep breath and open hands to ‘release’ this brick and mortar for whatever the Master Builder intends for it to be.
As I shared these images with my dear friend Leigh Rutledge Essig of Leigh Essig Photography - South Carolina Photographer,she knew exactly where we needed to go to capture the pictures that were in my head... she also knew first hand what these fallen bricks were in my own life and I knew I could trust her with the vulnerability of capturing that story from behind a camera lens. Leigh, you have walked with me through some of my darkest days and I'm so thankful for the incredible gift you have for photography and reflecting light and beauty - not just as a photographer, but as a friend.
