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Waiting for the Return of the River: The Spirit of the Gila
My family and I live near the dry banks of the Gila River. While photographing for The Spirit of the Saguaro project I named a number of the unpublished images Waiting for the Return of the River; as if, with infinite patience, the land is wating. We are all waiting. I realize that the river has been present in each photograph I have taken here, though I pointed to it indirectly. I have now turned to face it, exploring in image and word the questions that haunt me:
What does it mean for the spirits bodies minds of the Akimel O'othham, the River People, to live in deep connection with this bountiful, flowing river for thousands of years, then suddenly without it?
How does it affect all of us when a river, which has flowed for millions of years, no longer does?
Standing in the dry riverbed does it still flow far beneath our feet?
How does one photograph what is no longer physically here?
How does one photograph the beauty and life force that remain?
Can we still gain sustenance from the river?
How can we sustain it?
This project is currently in development. I hope that, ultimately, it will serve as a model for river communities to reconnect with the spirits and sustenance of their rivers, joining us in the hope that we will see our rivers run freely again.
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