“Photography is an art of observation. It has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.” – Elliott Erwitt It always fascinates me to look at my photo library on my phone after several days. Almost without exception, themes seem to emerge. Colors, subject matter,…
Category: photos
Bowie, Proust, and Sunday Thoughts
LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this article with David Bowie’s answers to Proust’s famous questionnaire. (Link here) Not only were Bowie’s answers thought-provoking (and funny), so were the questions themselves. So I decided to answer the questions myself, accompanied by a few recent photos. What is your idea of perfect happiness? Adventures with my kids What is…
Plant Courage
“Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. You wait and watch and work: You don’t give up.”- Anne Lamott I marvel at plants that grow where they’re not supposed to. It’s oddly inspiring. Growth can happen in…
Signs of the Season
The leaves have been as reluctant to change as the temperatures have been slow to drop. But one thing is for sure, the days are gradually growing shorter — and my runs are getting darker. And over the past few days, I’ve noticed some sure signs of the season’s transition. Resident chipmunk or neighbor’s squirrel…
Behind the Scenes With Big Cats
“My favorite thing is to go where I’ve never been.” – Diane Arbus Yesterday I took my Little Sister on an adventure at our zoo for a behind the scenes tour of Big Cat Country! What a great time! Neither of us had ever done this before. When we first walked up to the exhibit…
A Good Sign
Some people wait for pumpkin spice lattes to mark fall’s arrival. Others wait for the arrival of football as the sign of the season. Or mums. Or apple cider. My signs of the season include funky pumpkins at the Farmer’s Market. Or the migration of monarch butterflies. Or landscaping changes. And cooler temperatures. But perhaps the sign of fall we anticipate the…
God is Everywhere
“The presence of God is everywhere, you have only to embrace it with your attention.” – Deepak Chopra LOVED this story in Spirituality & Health by Snatam Kaur called “God is Everywhere.” The contrast between her childhood buddy’s view of God and her own made me laugh. I tend to subscribe to the author’s view. I do…
Learning the Hard Way
“Nothing ever goes away until it teaches us what we need to know.” – Pema Chodron You know, I never really understood that quote until recently. In fact, I’d never even thought about it much. But it popped in my head last night during a run. One of the things I love about running is that…
Hey, I Have an Idea!
An 80 degree day and an outing with my Little Sister? Yes, please. The original plan was to go to the zoo, but I had a last-minute idea. Typically, the five most dreaded words in my household are “Hey! I have an idea!” But every now and then, my ideas pan out. Sometimes even some…
You Are What You Notice
A cat’s purr in my ear. An easy morning commute. Homemade pumpkin bread. A thoughtful note from a friend. Rainbows appearing at my feet. Texts from both of my kids at the exact same time. The arrival of a new issue of my favorite magazine. Sparkles dancing under a bridge. A cute couple picnicking under…
It’s the Japanese Festival!
Got to spend the afternoon at one of my very favorite places with some of my favorite people. Today our Botanical Garden was host to the annual Japanese Festival. Bonsai displays, art, demonstrations, food, flowers, Japanese product vendors…there was a lot of neat stuff. We were surprised by how many people dressed in ethnic costumes for the…
Long and Short of It
“There is one simple thing wrong with you – you think you have plenty of time.” — Carlos Castaneda, author Getting older has been on my mind a lot lately. I’ve not done anything unusual in the way of self-reflection or anything, but I’ve noticed some changes in myself. People, circumstances, and difficult discussions don’t…
Home
“I never realize how much I like being home unless I’ve been somewhere really different for a while.” – Juno After a number of trips to really different places over the past month or so for work, vacation and otherwise, I am happy to be home. And my travels are over for a little while. But I’m…
A Little Quiet
“The quieter you become, the more you can hear.” – Ram Dass I’m sorry that my blog has been a little quiet for the past few days. I’ve not been neglectful, I’ve just spent the last few days on a silence retreat on the grounds of a convent in Indiana. With all of life’s recent changes…
Sometimes
“We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.”
Always Remember…
You are braver than you believe, Stronger than you seem, And smarter than you think.” –A.A. Milne Since the mind behind Pooh Bear said this, I’m going to trust it is true. Because Pooh is never wrong. But if you figure out how to accomplish all of the above, please let me know. Because sometimes it’s…
Good to Go
Despite any drawbacks or concerns accompanying pop culture’s Pokemon Go craze, I will say this: I have never seen so many public spaces being utilized by so many people. Especially young people. I’ve had many a Sunday stroll through Laumeier Sculpture Park, and it’s typically a pretty solitary exercise. Not today. I’ve never seen the place so…
Patterns, Shapes, and Hidden Things
Try to find patterns, interesting shapes, and hidden things. That was my photo challenge to myself early this morning when I went to the Botanical Garden. I also confined myself to the front of the garden, with a boundary of the pools near the climatron. My favorite subject, the Japanese Garden, is beyond that boundary. But…
Three-Day Adventure…and a New Chapter
When you spend 24 hours of a three-day road trip in the car, you make your own adventures. My younger son started his new job in Tennessee today, so his brother, his girlfriend, and I moved him over the weekend. Each way, we drove through Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. Day One We didn’t stop…
Sometimes
“Sometimes I need only to stand wherever I am to be blessed.” – Mary Oliver, poet
29 Life Lessons…
…to learn from Thich Nhat Hanh: 1.) Never underestimate the power of a kind word, a touch, or a smile. “The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” 2.) If you love someone, the greatest gift you can give them is your presence. “The most precious…
For One Minute…
…walk outside. Stand there… …in silence. Look up at the sky… …and contemplate… …how amazing life is. (Have we had the most amazing clouds lately or what?)
This and That, Chi-Edition
While it was a short trip to Chicago, we still managed to see some neat stuff. Here are some miscellaneous finds along the way. A little bit of garage graffiti. And a disgruntled dumpster. And a paint chip profile portrait.. On a completely unrelated topic, it is worth noting that the hotel in which we…
Peace
“Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.” — unknown (But a little quiet sure never hurt anybody.)
hey there, friends 