From Montreal to Toronto and St. Catharines, Melissa explores attitudes, assumptions and the little details in life.
All parts are connected
This photo was taken in an odds and ends store in toronto. my roomate and I used to go to just relax, look at the boxes and boxes of ‘things’ and I got to wondering how we are seen and treat ourselves as ‘parts’ without realizing that all our parts are connected and need love and care equally to be healthy.
The details in my life
This is under a rail bridge, on a hike in St.Catharines. I liked it afterwards because it signifies the details in my life, how sometimes big picture thinking means you miss out on the most beautiful parts. really its just a piece of wood, but its so beautiful, still, quiet.. but impactful. reminds me to take notice of those things, and people who are quiet and get unnoticed.
Assumptions
Montreal subway. I found myself making assumptions about the people around me (based on appearance and what images I have been taught signify personal characteristics, skin colour, etc), and then while I was tying my shoes I realized that everyone was the same. pants and shoes. all equal. everyone on the same track, waiting for the same thing, but silently going about their own lives.
Calm
The beach near Bayfield – I always feel better near water, more calm, more peaceful, more together. the sun was so warm and safe – I had gone to think, to relax, to get a break and clear my mind. all the stones reminded me of all the pressures and fears I had at the moment. but then I remembered they were so tiny in the grand scheme of things, and that I was walking all over them! It helped me put things into perspective but reminded me that all those tiny pieces are a part of who I am.
Paranoia
Benches. so weird. but this picture is again from Montreal. I have this paranoia about benches. because I’ve always seen people on benches and figured they were under some sort of distress. from what Ive seen in movies, photos, posters.. benches are somewhere you go for respite, somewhere you sit when you’ve had enough, you are troubled, you can’t handle one more step in life and need a break. I always wonder when people are on the bench what their struggle is. What they are hiding from, and I don’t want people thinking those thoughts about me.. so I don’t often sit on benches in public .. this sounds ludacris I know, but think about movies, images.. who sits on benches.
House of Pain?
The door. this is behind the hospital on the south east side corner of commissioners and wellington (not sure what that hospital is called). Its from an old abandoned building that I was told was used to house war veterans. I can only imagine if that was the case, what this locked door had hiding behind it. my first assumption was mental illness. ptsd, depression, anxiety, psychosis, amongst many other physical disparities. I felt like if I were to open that door all of it’s secrets would flood over me. (maybe from watching too many thriller movies). but then I also thought about how the treatment of these MI have changed. we no longer institutionalize people together.. we have evolved somewhat with treatment being in vivo – within your environment rather than taking you out of your environment to heal. old buildings are just like bodies, they house so much struggle, pain, ad joy.. all under our delicate skin.
