-22-

Posted by Rob Salem on

22-03

In 2012, the US Department of Veteran’s Affairs estimated that an average of 22 veterans committed suicide every day. Recent estimates place that number closer to 20 a day, and while that represents a decline, it is still 20 too many.

The -22- project is something I was invited to participate in as a photographer, specifically to help create a series of photos representing the struggle that many veterans face after returning from the battlefield. The ultimate message of the project is two-fold: to remind combat veterans to do a commo check and call a brother, and to bring greater awareness to the public at large of a legitimate social crisis while giving family and friends an intimate look at the kinds of battles their Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines may be fighting even after coming home.

Visit http://novavox.thestormworks.com/project22.html to learn more and to see the complete photo series.

Interlude

Posted by Rob Salem on
It is that resonant silence,
this unsettling sense
of what is to come,
the internal roar
held still by inertia,
as I quietly come undone;
 
it is that moment
of clarification
just before the storm,
the lie of peace,
the long deep breath,
the hope of the unborn;
 
it is the veil thinned
and the Muse’s kiss,
the raven’s siren song,
the restless sky
and the beat of time
that holds my soul aloft,
 
though heavy I am
against the wind,
my heart rooted in earth.