• 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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  • insects

    Todays Work

    July 17, 2010
    Grasshopper in morning dew, Great Smoky Mountains

    “All you can work on today is directly in front of you. Your job is to develop an imagination of the possible.”

    Art & Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland

    While on a trip to the Smoky Mountains I dropped and broke my Nikon 80-400mm VR lens, a $1400 loss. Ouch! Needles to say I spent the last 3 days of our 7 day trip with nothing but two other Nikon lens, a 16-35mm and 24-85mm. Now my longest focal range dropped from 400mm to 85mm, what was I going to shoot?

    The first morning we were able to shoot in Cades Cove we were met with fog, wonderful fog. Along with the fog comes the heaviness of the morning dew, so needles to say we were pretty wet by the time we returned to the hotel. I noticed a barb wire fence covered with dew near the Tipton Place and wandered over to have a look-see. I discovered this grasshopper hanging upside down and patiently waiting for the morning sun to dry his body for the days activities. Since the 24-85mm also had macro capabilities it worked great for me to get some nice images. The fog was burning off and you can see the sun approaching in the background. This image was one of my first attempts at macro photography and spurred the purchase a nice macro lens. So, I ended up working on what was in front of me.

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  • Art/Design,  writing/reading

    White knuckles

    November 15, 2009
    Tight Grip

    Working as a flight attendant I get to see people who are afraid to fly. They will have a tight grip on the armrest, breathing is short, eyes are open wide and constantly searching all that is around them, ears are alert to every sound. Once the aircraft lifts from the ground their bodies tighten and become rigid. Fear is in control.

    Fear runs rampid in our world, cheating some of us from living life to its fullest. The biggest regrets in my life have been those times I failed to try due to fear of failure, which is failure. I wonder how many images I have missed because I was white knuckling it. Each day I have the chance to experience life outside my comfort zone and maybe learn something wonderful. It’s all about letting go and trusting.

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  • Plants/Nature,  quotes,  Religion/Spirituality

    A Spiritual Way of Life

    April 30, 2009
    Spiritual Light

    “If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know  peace, No matter how far down the scale we have  gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others, That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.”

    Alcoholics Anonymous
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  • writing/reading

    One Foot in Front of the Other

    March 8, 2009
    Moving Forward

    “Most fears arise from uncertainty. When we’re stuck in fear, we can’t put one foot in front of the other unless we know what lies ahead. Our life doesn’t even feel like our own life, it’s so controlled by fear”

    Dzigar Kongtrul

    Fear is paralyzing. I have many regrets in my life, those unfulfilled dreams and plans, because I did not try. As I’ve grown older it has become apparent how much of a role fear played. I may have feared failure itself or the effort it may take or the time it may take, the list could could go on forever. Yet, I know from experience how fulfilling it can be to step forward and see where my steps will take me. My dreams and plans may only be the tip of a larger iceberg where bigger and better things will unfold.

    And, to follow along on this theme, I ventured out and changed my theme on this blog. Another photoblogger uses this theme and I think it would work better for me. It has flexible width and allows for larger images to post while still keeping three columns. Please let me know if it is appealing in content, color, size and speed.

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