• Candid Portraits,  People/Portraits,  quotes

    Love is…

    March 24, 2022

    Love is what we are born with. Fear is what we learn. The spiritual journey is the unlearning of fear and prejudices and the acceptance of love back in our hearts. Love is the essential reality and our purpose on earth. To be consciously aware of it, to experience love in ourselves and others, is the meaning of life. Meaning does not lie in things. Meaning lies in us.

    Marianne Williamson

    It was just after 7:30 am and the morning light on Adriana’s auburn hair was radiating around her! She was in the spotlight. Love is shining on her and in her. She agreed to let me take a shot while she continued to work on her computer. The subject, the light and the moment, all make this image a meaningful moment. Thank you, Adriana.

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  • landscape,  Plants,  quotes,  seasons,  snow,  trees,  winter scenes

    Condition of Being Human

    March 9, 2022
    CSU Oval this morning

    “Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into the places of pain, to share in brokenness, fear, confusion, and anguish. Compassion challenges us to cry out with those in misery, to mourn with those who are lonely, to weep with those in tears. Compassion requires us to be weak with the weak, vulnerable with the vulnerable, and powerless with the powerless. Compassion means full immersion in the condition of being human.”

    Henri J.M. Nouwen

    It’s snowing again this morning. If you look closely you’ll see a bicyclist pedaling across campus to their class. Weather app says it’s 14 degrees with 17 mph winds and feels like -2 degrees. With these weather conditions maybe we could say the bicyclist is super human.

    Anyway, I thought the quote represents something the political and social powers of the world need to understand more about, actually experience themselves. Stay warm!!!!

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  • landscape,  quotes,  seasons,  shadows,  snow,  winter scenes

    We have to change…

    January 18, 2022

    A lot of our fear, hatred, anger, and feelings of separation and alienation come from the idea that we are separate from the planet. We see ourselves as the center of the universe and are concerned primarily with our own personal survival. If we care about the health and well-being of the planet, we do so for our own sake. We want the air to be clean enough for us to breathe. We want the water to be clear enough so that we have something to drink. But we need to do more than use recycled products or donate money to environmental groups. We have to change our whole relationship with the Earth.

    Thich Nhat Hanh

    I guess if I were to have a resolution or goal for the coming year it would be to continue the change in my relationship with Mother Earth, not just in my thinking but in my actions.

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  • Documentary/Street,  lifestyles,  People/Portraits,  quotes

    I’m okay with that…

    December 16, 2021
    Ice skating in Old Town

    “To perceive the world differently, we must be willing to change our belief system, let the past slip away, expand our sense of now, and dissolve the fear in our minds.”

    William James

    Even at my age and with the knowledge that fears are mostly bogeymen, they still creep in. Some fears seem quite easy to overcome and face while others can paralyze me. I like how James suggests that we be willing to change our belief system. Seems to be a lifelong process of willingness and I’m okay with that.

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  • clouds,  horizons,  John O'Donohue,  landscape,  quotes,  writing/reading

    A Prayer

    July 30, 2021

    “May I have the courage today
    To live the life that I would love,
    To postpone my dream no longer
    But do at last what I came here for
    And waste my heart on fear no more.”

    John O’Donohue

    This image was taken back in May. There is something about this tree that keeps me coming back to visit. Wonder if it’s the solitude this tree lives plus the courage to live the life it’s called to live. I also wonder how many of us have failed to live the life we would love.

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  • clouds,  landscape

    Storm clouds or squalls

    September 23, 2019

    Storm clouds on Colorado’s eastern plains taken in 2011

    “It takes a real storm in the average person’s life to make him realize how much worrying he has done over the squalls.” Bruce Barton

    I am learning the storm clouds I see on my inner horizons of life may be nothing more than squalls.  These squalls could be depression, worry, fear, loneliness, insecurities, fatigue, catastrophizing. On the other hand, the storms in life are things like illness, loss, or death, suffering, a broken camera lens, or a memory card failure. Ya know, true storms!

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  • Avian,  Canada Goose

    An Intercalary Year

    February 29, 2016
    Canada Geese Lifting Off
    Canada Geese Lifting Off

    Some days it seems like there are moments when things are not in focus and life is moving way too fast. These past two days have had those moments. I attribute some of it to restlessness, unnecessary worry, imaginary fears, apprehension, that relentless voice of self-doubt. Those moments can sneak up on me when I do not take time for quiet, meditation, exercise, good eating habits, good rest, time in nature and  community, all of which have become essential in my life. When I include these practices in my day I am better prepared for the days unexpected moments.

    A good example of this is the above image. I did not plan this shot because as a photographer I just was not prepared. 🙂 Happy Leap Day!

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