ANGELA B. PAN

So weird that it’s Wednesday, right? I feel like long holidays always throw off my sense of days. Not that I’m complaining at all. I love them. I got to spend time with family and friends and there’s nothing better than that!

Saturday we had a lot of rain. It rained all day and was super gloomy. So in my head that meant that Sunday would have a good sunrise. Even though I was still in my ‘long holiday mode’, I still managed to wake up in time to catch the sunrise from the Lincoln Memorial. I was super lucky too. The sky only had a little hint of pink for a minute and then it was gone. The rest of the sunrise was cloudy and gloomy. But you know what’s funny? Around this time of year, I always see young people hanging out on the steps of the Lincoln. I can only assume that they just started collage and it’s the first time that they have complete freedom. So they stay up all night, doing who knows what, and then thinks its a great idea to watch the sunrise over the reflecting pool. They’re never rowdy or disruptive, but you can definietly tell that they’re struggling to stay awake. LOL. I’m sure I did similar things when I was in college. But hey, at least they’re taking the time to appreciate the new day 🙂 Which they’re probably going to just sleep through anyways. You can see what I mean on the bottom left, next to the column. You may not have noticed it, but there’s someone laying down there “appreciating the new day”.

My camera settings for this image was F13 at 8 seconds ISO 200 on a tripod. Luckily, this early in the morning, no one cares about about your tripod.

Recently I read an article entitled, “I hate the Cherry Blossoms. There I said it” by Josh Lorenzo. He’s a part of the Capital Weather Gang crew at the Washington Post so I thought it’d be an interesting read. The Capital Weather Gang has always been my go-to for big weather storms or anything like that. So I wanted to hear what he had to say. If you missed it, you can read the it here.

I understand what Josh means. I think pre-photography, I would of felt similar on some points. There are cherry blossoms in my neighborhood, why do I have to go all the way to DC to see them? They’re just a lot of hype, lots of tourists, blah blah blah.

Here’s how I see things currently: Becoming a photographer has made me look and see the world differently but I’ve always loved the cherry blossoms. They make me smile. They make me happy. They make the city more enjoyable and fun to walk around and explore. They bring lightness and color to a city that has been wrecked with controversy and “fake news”. I truly believe that people all around the world should experience this kind of DC as opposed to the one you see on the TV.

And considering they usually last only a week, why can’t we have the one week out of the 52 in a year to appreciate, rejuvenate, and bring more life back in to the city? Then it goes back to the ordinary black and white marble structures that were used to. Boorrringggg.

The blossoms are an extraordinary event that should be celebrated. Please don’t make this into ANOTHER thing to complain about. If cherry blossoms won’t make you happy, what will?  And if you think the best thing Japan has to offer is was a better Ramen recipe or a blue print on how to build a better Toyota Camry, then you need to learn how to appreciate the beauty in the little things that surrounds you. The cherry blossoms were a present that should be appreciated, cared for and admired.