“The self is not an object or a fixed point of reference. It is a diverse inner landscape too rich to be grasped in any one concept.”
John O’Donohue
Diverse Inner Landscape
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Distant clouds and moon looking upon an open prairie -
Longing to Wander
Nature trail at Arapaho Bend Nature Area “The wanderer is one who gives priority to the duties of longing over belonging. No abode is fixed. No one place is allowed finally to corner or claim the wanderer. A new horizon always calls. The wanderer is committed to the adventure of seeing new places and discovering new things.”
John O’DonohueI just read the above quote from O’Donohue’s book Eternal Echoes two days ago. It so rings true for me. Yes, call me a romantic but as I approach my 70th birthday in a couple months, I still have those inner urges, the desires of the wanderer. I’ve been in my condo for 20 years now, it is my abode, it is a sanctuary for quiet, a place to meditate, read and write, a place to rest my head and keeps me warm and dry, and it is a physical place. The wanderer does not have that abode but journeys toward those new undiscovered horizons. I believe those new horizons are a sanctuary, a place of quiet for us to discover. We can just be, wherever we are, even wandering. So, today I’m dreaming or longing of wandering.
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Temporary Sojourners
Sunset on Larimer County Rd. 3 “We rush through our days in such stress and intensity, as if we were here to stay and the serious project of the world depended on us. We worry and grow anxious; we magnify trivia until they become important enough to control our lives. Yet all the time, we have forgotten that we are but temporary sojourners on the surface of a strange planet spinning slowly in the infinite night of the cosmos.”
John O’DonohueI broke the stay-at-home orders and headed out of town. Don’t tell anyone. I know how much quieter it is in town with half the traffic but it is even quieter on a dirt road in eastern Larimer County. Meadowlarks were singing their hearts out which made my heart sing. Not sure I have ever photographed these trees before. So, expect more of them.
I am reading a second book by John O’Donohue called Eternal Echoes: Celtic Reflections on Our Yearning to Belong. It is as good as his first one and that’s where this quote comes from. Good night. I’m off to bed.
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Snowy Easter Morning
A light dusting of snow and cold temperatures on Easter morning “No one else has access to the world you carry around within yourself; you are its custodian and entrance. No one else can see the world the way you see it. No one else can feel your life the way you feel it. Thus it is impossible to ever compare two people because each stands on such different ground. When you compare yourself to others, you are inviting envy into your consciousness; it can be a dangerous and destructive guest.”
John O’DonohueAwoke to a dusting of light snow and cold. It is now 27 degrees, snow is falling again and expecting it throughout the day. I shortened my morning walk not because of the cold but the light breeze out of the north penetrates my clothes. I thought maybe a cup of hot coffee in my wicker rocker, watching it snow from my bedroom window, would be more comfortable, and it is. Happy Easter!
Journal, fountain pen and coffee - Candid Portraits, coffee shops, Documentary/Street, John O'Donohue, lifestyles, People/Portraits, quotes
The Warmth of the Coffee Shop
It’s cold outside but nice and warm inside the coffee shop A Blessing of Solitude
John O’Donohue, Anam Cara
“May you recognize in your life the presence, power, and light of your soul. May you realize that you are never alone, that your soul in its brightness and belonging connects you intimately with the rhythm of the universe. May you have respect for your own individuality and difference. May you realize that the shape of your soul is unique, that you have a special destiny here, that behind the facade of your life there is something beautiful, good, and eternal happening. May you learn to see yourself with the same delight, pride, and expectation with which God sees you in every moment.” -
Using our inner lens
New bicycles “If you try to view yourself through the lenses that others offer you, all you will see are distortions; your own light and beauty will become blurred, awkward, and ugly. Your sense of inner beauty has to remain a very private thing.”
John O’Donohue -
Life Moves On
Sunset in Fort Collins taken in 2004 “There was never a dawn, regardless how beautiful or promising, that did not grow into noontime. There was never a noon that did not fall into afternoon. There was never an afternoon that did not fade toward evening. There never was a day yet that did not get buried in the graveyard of the night.”
John O’Donohue, Anam Cara
