Stone and Sea are locked in an endless battle; each strives to outlast the other in the quest for permanence. In this eternal struggle, Stone is worn and crushed by Sea, and Sea is filled and moved by Stone. The altercation continues through the eons, Stone seeming at permanent rest, Sea seeming in permanent motion.

 

Wood enters the picture, and serves as a reminder of impermanence. Wood endures, but fades over time, and crumbles into dust. But, during its tenure, Wood drinks the Sea, and Wood crushes rock, fighting back against the facade of permanence. And in the end, Wood endures through a cycle of renewal that even Stone and Sea cannot match. Which is the greater embodiment of permanence?

The main character for this image showed up far away from the Sea, in the Woods and a day earlier than I found the tidal pool into which it would make its permanent home. When I saw this gnarled remainder of a once sturdy tree, I knew that I wanted to record its shape and form. But to what end? I wouldn't know immediately. I simply realized I had found my character, and it needed its milieu.

In my wanderings, I found this tidal pool along the coast of Acadia National Park near Schoodic Educational and Research Center. The coast was breathtaking, and only a few yards beyond the rock wall shown here, the Sea waged a raging battle, crashing endlessly against the rocks. It being low tide, a part of the Sea remained stranded within the rocks, and from this low vantage, all seems still and tranquil. I had found a fitting environment in which to continue my study of permanence.