The Next Day

The day after. Can't say that I slept well last night. Woke up at 5am with a terrible sense of loss. At first I thought it was just the bitter aftertaste of a bad dream only to realise that I wasn't dreaming about what I had lost.

Yesterday somebody stole much of what I treasure most in terms of material possessions. My camera, lens, video and various assorted knicknacks just disappeared whilst in was drinking coffee in Starbucks. Of course, this is just stuff, nothing that can't be replaced. The objects were not unique in themselves, indeed the only thing that made them special were that they belonged to me.

On the other hand the represented far more than just a bunch of lenses and chips, they were part and parcel of what has kept me sane over the last few years when the rest of my life seemed to lurch from one crisis to another and offered a way of not letting it all get too much.

I always thought that something would happen to my camera but I reckoned that would involve being in the wrong place and time in some riot or protest. Or that it would be confiscated by the authorities to enter a legal limbo from which it would only emerge years later.

After coming through riots, confrontations, beatings, road accidents unscathed and all kinds of other abuse while in my backpack it seems so wrong that I should lose this stuff in something so stupid a manner.

Thanks to everyone who has sent messages of help and sympathy. They have all been most appreciated.