sad eyes on smiling faces

working in retail provides a lot of people-observing which is something that this introverted person loves to do.  numerous people flood into the little store buying and returning and exchanging.  as someone who has always been a very strong observer, there's something I've noticed that I see in a lot of the customers that come and go...
there are so many sad eyes on smiling faces.  it's been a sad observation--  people with different fashions and lives and stories who smile to hide the pain of lost dreams, past pain, and sorrow.  people whose eyes tell the story.  I always smile back, offer a compliment and hope that somehow their day, their life will get better.  I sorta pride myself on my people-observing skills, but this has been one observation that has left me sad.
sad for those who fake a smile
for those whose dreams are lost
for those who walk around trying to hide the pain
for those who carry the weight of the world in one pair of eyes

eyes tell stories but some stories are sad to read.

you get up anyway

one day you may wake up and realize your life has taken a complete u-turn from the plans and expectations you made when you were younger.  those years you spent dreaming and planning the life you would have when you became an "adult".  but life doesn't usually go as planned.  in fact, you may wake up and wonder how on earth you got to where you are and why you're not where you want to be.  you may get disillusioned, depressed, hard and allow yourself to slip into a mindset of just "rolling with it".  you might throw the towel in and give up on any hopes and dreams and succumb yourself to a life of apathy.  for a time you might allow yourself to wallow in the pain of lost dreams and dashed hopes and wander around bleary-eyed not even making goals or plans for the future.

it may sound like your typical cliche ending but I'll say it anyway.  giving up is the easy path and few people stick it out when the going goes black.  and while somedays and some mornings you may wake up and still feel the ache of lost dreams and feel a searing twinge of hopelessness, you get up anyway and I think that is what makes all the difference.

March

March--  These pictures were taken only two days apart.

Erin Leann

home

"Home isn't where you're from.  It's where you find light when all grows dark."