Nature (part 1): Finding my way through the great out of doors.
I am not a photographer. In fact I abhor the task of photographing anything. Yet with the cell phone camera, now at my disposal, I have found myself more eager to capture something I want to remember. For instance, while out on a walk or hike should I come across something in nature that causes me pause, I think to myself, “I would like to capture this inspiring moment and share it with someone else.” But more important than this nonsense of my use or non-use of a camera is the idea in the aforementioned sentence of nature giving one, a cause to pause. For as you know, from reading my last few posts, I am slowly crawling out of the pit of extreme stress. And while in the pit, I don’t care what kind of natural phenomenon might occur before my eyes, my soul was too bogged down to appreciate. Oh my mind was keen to understand the beauty before me if an instance such as a hummingbird allowing me the rare opportunity of a private viewing, should present itself. But my soul would have no response. It was just plain ‘ol, flat.
So it is, when I am out and about in my suburbian nature and my soul is touched by something, not just my mind, I can delight in the knowledge that I am “coming back”. For when in darkness, it is difficult to even recognize oneself. I am a nature lover, thus when nature I cannot love, there is an obvious disconnect.
The following photos are ones taken with my little Samsung cell phone, while out walking with Piper the dog. Their occurrence before me caused me pause. And in that quiet state, I thanked my Lord for utilizing nature (once again) to call me back. The beauty of the Cherry Blossom seemed to say, “I lay dormant along with you, but it is again time to bloom.” The trickling of the San Juan Creek reminds me that while the hand of man is just a few steps away, the hand of the Lord is always present (as the running water, in an otherwise dry creek-bed, testifies). And the colorful turning of the leaves of one solitary tree, amidst the evergreen backdrop, silently demands recognition…you decide what it says! For me, its silence enacts a balm-like remedy to my spirit…the golden quiet.
Last, but not least, is the juxtaposition of the man made stop sign alongside the pink blossoming tree. Actually, the sign is appropriate to the context of this post. “Stop,” it says. Stop and redirect. Somehow, someway, get a new perspective. See again. Breathe again. Take pause. Utilizing the grand, or not so grand, natural occurrences around us can call us back. Back to a place of understanding who we are. Even in a city environment one can experience the powerful call of nature as a weed makes its way through a crack in the concrete, shouting loud and clear, “I am Here, I made it!” And the inadvertent message to us should be, “so can we.”
Next up, Films, part 2.
Nature in Suburbia
The accomplice
Engulfed in Pink
Harmonious living
The running creek
living in loss and gratitude 
The Noise