Conditional Reality

Swampcooler Combover photographed wildflowers until he realized his camera made the blossoms wither on their stems and slide into the ground. He felt so awful about this that he destroyed all his equipment and took up painting instead. Swampcooler worked with feverish energy, making dozens of portraits of flowers in pastels using his old photographs as models. When he was finished, he returned to some of the places where the flowers had died under the influence of his camera. The flowers were back, bright and healthy as ever. Swampcooler was so relieved he sat down and had a good cry.