This project really allowed the class to get creative and to think outside of the box that we are often placed in. This project allowed our site to begin to tell the story as its seasonal appearance literally changed before our eyes. With a little bit of research on our end, the site history seemed to tell the rest. We were just there to put the storyline together, fill the missing link and to capture the site on camera.

This project also taught me a lot more than just the Bushkill Creek and about our site. This project really made me think about stopping to look at and think about your surroundings. I was one of those cars that just drove by these sites and never thought about the story behind each of them. Speaking to my site specifically, I always drove by thinking that it was just a sketchy place composed of abandoned buildings. Had this project not forced me to stop and think, I never would have thought about the beauty in the Bushkill across the street or about the existence of an industry as successful as the Rinek Rope Company.

I think that I can use this lesson from our story of place project as a guiding mantra in my everyday life. My train of thought often gets absorbed by the hustle and bustle of everyday life that it takes my attention away from my surroundings. When this happens I miss out on the parts of life that make it interesting and I lose my grounding. The story of place project taught me much more than about a spot on the Bushkill but, rather that every place on this Earth has a story and people that were a part of it– I just have to get out of my thoughts enough to notice them.