Jon Crispin's Notebook

One of my goals in the early part of this year is to work very hard at uploading the cases to willardsuitcases.com.  Today I edited Thomas Y’s case.  Here is a shot of one of the locks.  Sometimes I find myself just opening and closing them over and over; the sound can be very evocative.

When I started this project, I truly had no idea of the way that it could touch people.  On a daily basis I get email and comments from folks who stumble across the photos online.  I save them all, and sometimes I am awed by how the work is perceived by people whose lives have been touched by mental illness.  Today, a comment was posted by Daphne and since it was put up publicly, I hope that she won’t mind if I quote her here.

“I just saw this. oh my, I am so humbled for those who you make alive and human again. They were just like us in many ways. To be shrunk into ONE suitcase…is beyond me. I have a lifetime of mental illness in my family, and I have to say, they are just like us…all in all…as you show. Thank you.”

No, Daphne…..thank you.