My online journal where I share my interests in photography, nature, journaling, fountain pens, bicycling, coffee life, spirituality and the mystery of it all.
“Instead of hating the people you think are war-makers, hate the appetites and disorder in your own soul, which are the causes of war. If you love peace, then hate injustice, hate tyranny, hate greed – but hate these things in yourself, not in another.”
Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation
“This new day has greeted us with no rules; unconditional opportunity. Do not dilute the power of this new day with the hardship of yesterday. Greet this day the way it has greeted you; with open arms and endless possibility.”
Steve Maraboli
In darkness I drove east of town to watch the sunrise and distance myself from the city noise: trash trucks, sirens, traffic, landscapers and others. I felt tired but felt the need to stay open to any possibilities the new day may bring. Joyfully I encountered a group of five antelope (pronghorn) along Weld County Road 90. They are always on alert and in my experience they normally quickly run, keeping plenty of distance. So, for them to not run away while keeping a watch on me, was different and provided this photo opportunity. Not the best image because I used a handheld telephoto lens, out the car window, with the car running. No matter, I’ll take the experience I was offered. The sky is still filled with the smoke and will be for the next few days. May you have a wonderful Thursday.
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“But beauty (the landscape) has its own power, and it lives inside the minds of those who have been touched by its magnetic pull.”
Terry Tempest Williams
I’ve reflected and journaled for over a year whether I want to say “in my opinion” or “I believe” and what the difference is.
I’ve not always wanted to share my words on some issues because differences in opinion rise to the surface that have the potential to bring up conflict, and I hate conflict. Yet, it seems there is a desire within all of us to express ourselves, to be heard, voice our opinion or belief. I’m questioning if my opinion is really more about my egoic thinking, sharing my knowledge or what I’ve been taught. Is my opinion really my belief?
When two people have a difference of opinion, mutual true sharing can get lost in defending our opinions or refuting theirs. In my own life I would like to get to a place where I say what I believe from that deep place within, my heart or gut, rather than what I just think! Saying “In my opinion” can be an aggressive phrase while saying “I believe” is not. Doesn’t the poet, writer, lyricist share from a deep place within rather than from what they think. So, just for the heck of it, what is your opinion or what do you believe? 🤔 Happy Labor Day!
You only get one sunrise and one sunset a day, and you only get so many days on the planet. A good photographer does the math and doesn’t waste either.
Galen Rowell
Drove east to my spot on Weld County Road 90 yesterday afternoon. Needed the quiet. Storm clouds were building up along the front range so thought I may find storm clouds to photograph. I did. The one above is just developing along the foothills and eventually became quite large with heavy rain, lightning and thunder. It developed quite rapidly. It started to sprinkle on me so I sat in my car listening to a constant rumble of thunder. My sister got caught in it while on her walk and was drenched. Below is a rainbow as I headed home. Enjoy the weekend!
The other morning I did not read or journal as I normally do when I arrived at the natural area. Instead I sat on the bench with my chai and camera, just watching and listening. In the predawn darkness I could hear an owl hoot but never saw them. I felt the colors slowly change from the cool predawn blue to the warm golden sunrise. The absence of any wind to move leaves, the thistle or the grass presented a calm. All was still. There was a embracing quiet around me and within me. Every so often I would listen to my muse and lift the camera, compose and press the shutter button. Another good start to the day.
I enjoy experiencing sunrises, in case you haven’t noticed. I photograph a lot of them, in case you haven’t noticed. After I saw this image on my computer I asked myself the question, “What can I do to be a part of creating sunrise images that have my signature to them, that are not just repeats of yesterday or someone else or do I already have my own signature?” I want to experiment in more creative ways with images that really say something to me and about me. Which means you’ll probably see more sunrise images. 😁
After rain after many days without rain,
Mary Oliver, from Why I Wake Early
it stays cool, private and cleansed, under the trees,
and the dampness there, married now to gravity,
falls branch to branch, leaf to leaf, down to the ground
where it will disappear–but not, of course, vanish
except to our eyes. The roots of the oaks will have their share,
and the white threads of the grasses, and the cushion of moss;
a few drops, round as pearls, will enter the mole’s tunnel;
and soon so many small stones, buried for a thousand years,
will feel themselves being touched.
“In a society in which nearly everybody is dominated by somebody else’s mind or by a disembodied mind, it becomes increasingly difficult to learn the truth about the activities of governments and corporations, about the quality or value of products, or about the health of one’s own place and economy.
In such a society, also, our private economies will depend less and less upon the private ownership of real, usable property, and more and more upon property that is institutional and abstract, beyond individual control, such as money, insurance policies, certificates of deposit, stocks, and shares. And as our private economies become more abstract, the mutual, free helps and pleasures of family and community life will be supplanted by a kind of displaced or placeless citizenship and by commerce with impersonal and self-interested suppliers…
Thus, although we are not slaves in name, and cannot be carried to market and sold as somebody else’s legal chattels, we are free only within narrow limits. For all our talk about liberation and personal autonomy, there are few choices that we are free to make. What would be the point, for example, if a majority of our people decided to be self-employed?
The great enemy of freedom is the alignment of political power with wealth. This alignment destroys the commonwealth – that is, the natural wealth of localities and the local economies of household, neighborhood, and community – and so destroys democracy, of which the commonwealth is the foundation and practical means.”
Thomas Berry
Each morning our skies on the eastern horizon are filled with smoke. Air quality is poor and the color is repulsive. We do have a short period of time, 3-5 minutes when the sun is a bright orange orb through the smoke, but other than that it is disheartening. This was yesterday morning’s sunrise. ☹️