"I like to make pictures of the small things...

…so that people will love them and not step on them.”

The above quote is by photographer Harry S. C. Yen in the December 1970 issue of National Geographic magazine. I came across it years later as I was mining for images for a collage. The quote went into a sketchbook and into my soul.

Fast forward. I’m hiking with my brother and sister in the woods by a rocky stream. We’re walking and hopping from rock to rock.

Rocky Stream ©2018 Susan McDonnell

My brother tells my sister, “Stop!”. She does and he reaches down to the spot she was about to step and points to a tiny toad no larger than a penny.

Tiny Toad ©2018 Susan McDonnell

My sister was aghast that she may have stepped on the little toad and we both asked my brother, “How did you see that?!” He shrugged. I know how. My brother has hiked this path and many paths like it countless times. He sees in a way we do not.

Toad 16x20” oil ©2018 Susan McDonnell private collection

I created the painting above in honor of seeing in a way that protects the small things.

February 23, 2023