• clouds,  landscape,  mountains,  Plants,  quotes,  sunrises,  trees

    All a Truth

    Sunrise at Pineridge Natural Area

    “What if everything you have been taught is all a lie and everything you feel is all a truth?”

    Nikki Rowe

    There was a time in my youth when the things I was taught did not seem to fit with my feelings. That feeling came from somewhere within, a place I was not that familiar with, yet. Later I came to know it as intuition, a gut feeling, voice of my authentic self, the ground of my very being or whatever we choose to call it. I am now aware that when I was younger I was not taught the whole truth in school and church while expected to believe what I was taught. A controlling society does that whether it be a parent, a church, a government or an educational system.

    I’m learning the importance of listening and trusting my intuition. There needs to be a connection between what I think, what I’m told to be truth and what my intuition tells me. With so much access to information it is vital for me to listen to the voice within. Connecting these together has given me much better results in knowing my truth, making decisions while not living to someone else’s truth.

  • landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes,  sunrises

    Experience of life

    Sunrise at Pineridge Natural Area

    You have to understand that it is your attempt to get special experiences from life that makes you miss the actual experience of life.

    Michael A. Singer

    A quiet stillness greets us this morning after several days of almost constant wind. Sunshine brightens the world around me. It’s also 15 degrees. And, I do believe the blue sky is bluer today. Welcome the new day and don’t miss the experience of life. Now headed to Old Town and meet a friend for coffee. Have a great day!

  • clouds,  horizons,  landscape,  Plants,  quotes,  shadows,  trees

    Awareness of Shadows

    How can I be substantial if I do not cast a shadow? I must have a dark side also If I am to be whole.

    Carl Gustav Jung

    Jung believed that our shadow describes those aspects of our personality that we choose to reject and repress. After many years of reflecting back on my own experiences in life I am able to see where I hid from my dark side. Jung also says, “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” This awareness has helped me in many areas of my life, mainly in relationships.

    I’ve also become aware of the value shadows bring to my photography. Some of my favorite images are because of the interplay of shadows and light within them.

  • poems,  poetry

    To Pray

    Predawn along Peralta Trail just east of Gold Canyon, Arizona, April 2014

    To pray you open your whole self
    To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon
    To one whole voice that is you
    And know there is more
    That you can’t see, can’t hear
    Can’t know except in moments
    Steadily growing, and in languages
    That aren’t always sound but other
    Circles of motion.
    Like eagle that Sunday morning
    Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky
    In wind, swept our hearts clean
    With sacred wings.
    We see you, see ourselves and know
    That we must take the utmost care
    And kindness in all things.
    Breathe in, knowing we are made of
    All this, and breathe, knowing
    We are truly blessed because we
    Were born, and die soon within a
    True circle of motion,
    Like eagle rounding out the morning
    Inside us.
    We pray that it will be done
    In beauty.
    In beauty.

    Joy Harjo

    If you’re interested you can listen to Joy Harjo recite the Eagle Poem here.

  • Avian

    Photobombed

    My brother-in-law has a new hummingbird feeder. As the morning sun rose I stepped over to catch a starburst breaking the roofline along with the feeder and got photobombed.

    My sister and I arrived home about 6:45 pm last night. I had a wonderful time with family, filled with laughter and way too much food. But isn’t that what normally happens during the Thanksgiving holiday. Once again reminded of how much dislike I have for air travel. Have a great Tuesday!

  • clouds,  fall season,  landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes,  seasons,  sunrises

    Alive Within Mystery

    “I see that the life of this place is always emerging beyond expectation or prediction or typicality, that it is unique, given to the world minute by minute, only once, never to be repeated. And this is when I see that this life is a miracle, absolutely worth having, absolutely worth saving. We are alive within mystery, by miracle.”

    Wendell Berry
  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  sunsets

    Peace Within

    “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

    Ralph Waldo Emerson

    This is the time of the year when mornings begin to get cooler and afternoons stay hot. We call it fall. Met with a friend this morning at Pineridge Natural Area to watch the sunrise and sip on our chai lattes. We wore jackets. Made a crockpot of vegetable soup this morning before I left the condo and shared that with another friend at noon. When it reached 92 I decide it was time to visit Reservoir Ridge Natural Area. Without a jacket. As I took it all in, nature provided a nice wind to bring relief from the heat and provided some soothing sounds and sights for me to enjoy. A blue jay squawks from the cottonwoods behind me. A starburst shoots through the trees. I’m noticing leaves beginning to change colors. A hawk circles above. Clouds lazily drift overhead. Soon the sun dropped behind the mountains and I felt the coolness of the air. As this busy day comes to a close I reflect on both the good choices and poor choices I made today. And, I smile because there is a peace within. ❤️