Saturday, July 29, 2006

Standing still

Standing Still, Garden Pond, July 2006, HP Photosmart R817, Exposure 1/560 sec @ f4.5, ISO 100, no flash © Steven Crisp
[Note: as of yesterday, I've started to upload full size photos to Blogger, so if you want to see more detail in this (and subsequent) photos, just click on the photo]

Do you have a place where you can go and just "be" with nature? To stand still and observe all that is alive around you? To soak in the colors from an indescribable pallete. To bathe in warm breezes and drink in sweet nectar?

Please find your place and go there. Spend quiet time there, at least some of it alone. With nothing to do, and no where else to be. Hear nature sing to you. Let her embrace you, put her arm around your soul.

It makes me think of this poignent poem. Be aware of the world around you, and all of its mysterious beauty.
And A Meadow Lark Sang

"The child whispered, 'God, speak to me'
And a meadow lark sang.
The child did not hear.

So the child yelled, 'God, speak to me!'
And the thunder rolled across the sky
But the child did not listen.

The child looked around and said,
'God let me see you' and a star shone brightly
But the child did not notice.

And the child shouted,
'God show me a miracle!'
And a life was born but the child did not know.

So the child cried out in despair,
'Touch me God, and let me know you are here!'
Whereupon God reached down
And touched the child.

But the child brushed the butterfly away
And walked away unknowingly."


-- Ravindra Kumar Karnani
And of course these opening lines by William Blake (from Auguries Of Innocence):
To see a world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour.

4 comments:

Jyotsna said...

I am no photography buff but the photographs are amazing.Truly!Nature can really be like a healing balm that soothes one soul if only we make the time to find for that silent oneness with it..
thanks for your comments and for dropping by...I valued your comments.

Steven Crisp said...

jyotsna,

Thank you for the kind words. Yes, it is interesting how nature can help awaken that peaceful awareness. And as a side beneift, it requires you to slow down. What so many of us Westerners need is to just slow down.

We are, as a civilization, rather out of balance with nature. And if there is one thing Nature abhors (besides a vacuum) it is imbalance. You can be sure, it will correct the problem, one way or the other.

Here's hoping we can do our part to rectify the situation.

H0n3yb33 said...

I have my "place" and I go often...too many people do not stop to enjoy the worlds around them. Nice to see that you do.

Steven Crisp said...

Honeybee, I'm not surprised based on the perspectives I read in your blog. Thanks for the visit. I hope you have been well.