I love photographing herons. Their elegant stillness is contagious and I lose myself in the breathless awareness they embody.
This great blue heron was fishing in the ocean yesterday morning just outside my window. I sat with him for an hour, occasionally photographing him, mimicking his waiting for just the right moment.
Heron Mirrored in Ocean
Swan Lake in Saanich, British Columbia is part of an amazing wildlife refuge: The Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary.
The urban wetland that includes Swan Lake provides a lush habitat for a wide variety of birds and small animals, including turtles, muskrat, river otter and mink. In addition to the hiking trails around the lake, there is a 755-foot floating walkway across the Lake that offers an extraordinary way to experience the aliveness of the lake.
This Great Blue Heron was just one of the many gorgeous creatures I saw from the floating boardwalk.
Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary
To learn more about The Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary, visit www.swanlake.bc.ca
I love the taste of pure water and I recently researched water purifiers to find the best one for my home. During my search, I ran across a method of water purification that struck me as a good explanation of why it is necessary for our lives to take the twists and turns they do.
What I discovered was something called the tortuous path method of purification. The process takes contaminated water and removes harmful pathogenic bacteria, cysts, parasites, chemicals and other impurities, while leaving in the essential minerals our bodies need — simply by creating a winding, complex path for the water to follow.
So when your life takes yet another difficult turn, and things seem to be moving slower than they should, remember what happens to contaminated water along the tortuous path. When I look at my own life and what has been absorbed and separated out along the way, I’m filled with gratitude for such a long and winding road.
~Jim
Multi-coloured Rose
I love springtime conversations with Nature; they are so rich with blossoming. The great warehouse doors of gratitude open wide as I notice the extraordinary beauty all around.
One of my favourite poets is Jalaluddin Rumi, the 13th century leader of a learning community in Konya, Turkey. His scribe, Husam Chelebi, faithfully recorded Rumi’s poetic conversations with Nature, revealing an extraordinary awareness of Nature’s beauty, inspiration and wisdom.
What was said to the rose that made it open
was said to me here in my chest.
What was told the Cypress that made it strong
and straight, what was
whispered the jasmine so it is what it is, whatever made
sugarcane sweet, whatever
was said to the inhabitants of the town of Chigil in
Turkestan that makes them
so handsome, whatever lets the pomegranate flower blush
like a human face, that is
being said to me now. I blush. Whatever put eloquence in
language, that’s happening here.
The great warehouse doors open; I fill with gratitude,
chewing a piece of sugarcane,
in love with the one to whom every that belongs!
~Translation by Coleman Barks
How can I possibly share the complete experience of Nature through an image? That’s the question I explore every time I return from one of my photo adventures and begin the creative process of moving beyond the limitations of the camera, to include the dimensions of feeling, thought and state of being. It’s a labour of love, born out of a desire to honour the beauty, wisdom and inspiration found in Nature.
I never know what might be required as I browse through the many images in my camera; I simply wait for a surge in energy and breath, for a curiosity that draws me closer . . . a simple, clear, “Yes, this one.”
This morning at dawn, I walked out on the glaciated bedrock at the edge of the Salish Sea, enjoying the light, sounds, textures, colours and movements of water over stone. Instinctively, I snapped a photograph as the ocean surged and splashed across the variegated rock, gathering light in the flow. It was more motion than my camera could bring into focus; however, it did manage to capture the aliveness of the experience in a way that reminds me of Impressionist and Expressionist paintings.
Typically, my camera faithfully captures images, precisely depicting form and detail, yet they often appear lifeless. Occasionally, it renders the essence of the moment in an artistic way, bringing the visceral qualities of my conversation with Nature into view.
This is one of those images.
I was walking through the woods when I discovered this fallen tree, recently cut by a chainsaw, with the sun casting a shadow of its still-growing leaves onto the rings of the trunk. It reminded me of the many times I lay on the ground at night, looking up at the sky, marvelling at the turning galaxy and the energy that causes such delight.
career
1. a chosen pursuit; a profession or occupation; a job
2. the general course or progression of one’s working life or one’s professional achievements
natural livelihood
1. a labour of love that wholeheartedly engages one from the core of being
2. an embodiment of a person’s innate gifts and talents in ways that nourish well-being in one and all
Deep Listening in Nature
One of the most important conversations we can have with Nature is about the work we do, yet most of our information, training and guidance came from people who were taught by people who learned inside educational institutions.
I’ve been turning to Nature more and more, listening to Her Wisdom, and picking up a few simple truths regarding lifework:
• Each individual life is a vital part of a global ecosystem of interacting and interdependent relationships.
• Everything we do in our personal lives makes a difference in the world.
• Each life has inborn seed potential that, if nurtured with attention and interaction, can germinate into full blossom.
• Money is artificial and basing career decisions on it engenders an artificial life.
• Joseph Campbell’s philosophy of “Follow your bliss” came directly from Nature.
If you’re at a crucial point in your career — feeling drawn to right livelihood more than just making a living . . . wanting to honour who you truly are more than money — immerse yourself in Nature, listen deeply and dare to save the only life you can.
The Journey
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice –
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
“Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do –
determined to save
the only life you could save.
~Mary Oliver
Sparkling Potential
The morning was patchy with frost and the ground was alive with sparkling potential as the sun rose and ran straight from the horizon. I kneeled, put my face in the grass and began eavesdropping on the conversations going on inside that brilliant forest.
Curiosity is an integral and active part of nature. Plants and trees grow roots to discover the possibilities that lie just beyond their understanding. Seeds boldly go in search of unclaimed land. Sunlight ventures into darkness, fearlessly exploring places no human has ever touched.
When I set out on my hike that morning, I was hoping to photograph the eagles flying along the cliffs or the owls coming in from a night of hunting. Instead, I turned my camera towards the beauty inside drops of dew and the universe of dancing light that surrounded them.
Let curiosity have its way with you in Nature. Go outside, explore one square foot of earth and enjoy the discoveries!