the role of snow and truth seeking

post #525 

    Today, by sharing the beauty of snow, I honor the change of administrations in America. 

     So much that's difficult and dangerous could have happened this past week.  Instead, what traditionally happens -- on January 20th the fourth year after a previous inauguration in the USA -- took place.  The President and Vice President with the most votes, in fact the most ever in any such election, have become our duly elected 46th President and V.P..

      This election was held during a tragic and challenging pandemic. Even so, this year ours was one of the best conducted elections ever.  So many hard working and dedicated people across the land made that happen. Only a man who can't bear to lose, for his own personal inner reasons, could be so distraught as to lie over and over and over to his fellow citizens about the truth of the election's outcome.  Losing happens.

       I see the snow of this season as an image that speaks to me of a covering over of what is past, what willl quietly be feeding new growth, like underground roots.  This provides what's needed in order for there to be new growth in the spring. It actually mirrors what happens in our lives and with our committment to democracy.  This year there may not be vast amounts of snow in Kentucky, where most of my photos are made, but I think the idea of a rite of passage still exists.  I hope these snow photos do convey something about how nature faces the need for renewal. It’s work, but that’s what’s required for the huge rebuiliding task ahead of us.  

 

a visiting Coopers hawk , 2015

goldfinches, in their winter mode, 2015

2015

 

cardinal, the bird of Kentucky, 2015

2015

2015

 

 

 

Even the guest has to work for her keep --- THANK YOU red bird MELVA! (2015)

 

 

        The last two photos are by Rebecca, in February a year ago!

 

    May winter's job work its wonders and do the same for the humans -- who don't always give nature credit for what we can learn by paying attention to it.  

    Stay safe, seek truth, and let's practice being kinder to one another.

beginning of Biden as President, middle of winter, end of Trump's term, each loaded with unknowns

post #525

        Today is the middle of this three day weekend, but it also the start of a week that has a major begining midweek, preceeded by a major ending!  If the shut-down life we are leading doesn't mess with my sense of time, all that is happening these days -- combined with what is not able to happen --  certainly does throw me.  I'm left a bit disoriented sometimes about what day it is and what is happening when. I'm pretty sure that tonight is a blog post night....

        First on tonight's blog I need to try a second video that I said I'd add last week. Nine seconds.  If I remember correctly, a teenage neighbor was running his ATV backwards on our driveway, and I was photographing by turning backwards from the front seat. Such a treat!!

 

                     And what follows is more about our winter snows, which, after all, cover each of us 

                                                     no matter our politics.

 

 

 

busy birds

 

Christmas morning X 2  (I didn't go anywhere that day!)

yesterday morning

living room Christmas lights, or rather December lights, by T.

winter "lights," in a favorite photo of mine from years ago, called frost fence

                                                                        

            I love to work with these photos, since it requires concentration and doesn't cater well to life interrupted.  I revisit each place where I made the photo, a journey only I can really savor. For the blog, I try to pull some of the images together as if they were feeding off each other.  Story. Life is all about story, public ones and private ones. They are for telling each other.

            I had a comment from me from someone I know who recently wrote me a wonderful note. This is how it works: She puts a comment on my blog, and then it comes to me first to clear it for publishing.  However, her email address doesn't come with it.  In this case, I know the person but I don't have her email address so I couldn't ask her if she wanted me to publish the whole thing.  Usually it's not that complicated, but I thought I'd communicate with her and at the same time explain this aspect of comment leaving...  Thanks -- Ann

What can I say

post #524

        Such a week, besides COVID, besides the cold weather, besides the sane and saving election in Georgia, and besides the miseries in all parts of the world.  However, currently, we are not hearing all that much about anything except the intense attention to the terrible, harsh reality of the break-in Wednesday at the USA Capitol building.  There are deaths.  There's law breaking with abandon.  There's super-charged racism. A maelstom is in progress, monitored around the world. We will survive, but it will require an enormous amount of work and clearheadedness. 

        SO, I think I will share some photos from trips to other countries, as a reminder that there are places across the globe that look up to us and our democracy. There are other lives affected by our choices instead of just yours or mine. In adddition, we share the same earthly climate, the same pollution, the same pandemic, and the same love and hopes for our children.

 

ENGLAND -- the Cotswolds

waiting for the morning milk delivery

 

very early Sunday morning newspapers delivered but not yet on the shelves of Chipping Camden's small community Coop grocery store

 

 

FRANCE -- Paris

an early start at the Louvre

NOTRE DAME

see Steve's comment about these books....

FRANCE - St. Malo

 

French student group

my good friends Mariko and Christian

COSTA RICO

I hope everywhere good health is possible, and that we are up to the task of working hard to keep our democracy in good working order.  We will always need to keep on learning.

    

It may be a new year, but some old habits continue....

 post #523

        Yikes, it's normal that it's currently hard to tell the days apart, but Thursday holidays really throw me off even more. I even have known what I wanted to try doing today. It's just that I haven't done it yet. 

        I hope everyone stayed healthy and as happy as possibile during Christmas and New Year's Day.  I happened to have gotten snowed in for Christmas Day!  Can't blame that on the virus. However, we can blame every thing else on it.  Well, we unfortunately can't attribute it for the President's inability to acknowledge that he lost the election fair and square.  It sure is sad to see someone shooting himself in the foot day after day. Our thanks again to all the people across the country who worked so hard to make this election one of the steadiest and well done ones ever accomplished, and during a pandemic on top of every thing else!

        Well, I have a few photos to share, but I also want to try a video! A Walk in the Snowy Woods along the Creek.  My daughter, Rebecca, did the photography for it, Christmas day. I will leave the video here to try to get itself together by morning, when I can try it again.

         Here are some other photos in case the video bombs.  This first photo shows what a friend was sent in the mail..  on New Year's Eve.  I love it.

Another Rebecca photo -- We NEVER have taken a photo from this end of their pond, so it's exciting to see this.

the fried egg look on my semi frozen pond, from my second floor deck, on Christmas day

  May the week to come not be a disaster in any way.  May people come to their senses. And congratulations to Biden and Harris for their definitive win, ahead by almost 8 million votes.

'Twas the last blog post before Christmas

when all through the house,

clutter reigned, but luckily no mouse. 

 While at home, to herself, the writer asks,

 (therefore no need to wear any cloth masks)

will there soon be heard massive outrage and clatter?

We've wanted so much change that matters!

Yet four such difficult years are now ending.

Give us fortitude for the future that's pending.

On to equality, fairness, compassion!

On putting democracy back into fashion! 

Stay safe, stay brave and stay healthy, too.

Be grateful I can't sell this to get wealthy! Whew!

 

 post #522

not a Christmas photo, but I'll try for one this year

This was a trial Christmas photo one year, in Denver, but it happens to be a favorite of mine. Can't remember what in the world I was saying to them....

          We have had a single day this year with visible snow on the ground.  So far.

 

 

 This last photo is from a few days later, going for a walk across the road from my place, on the neighbor's hay field. My house is sort of visible through the trees.

All best wishes for the season to everyone, but please stay patient and believe that we will need to wear masks for many more months. More than a few people I know well have had to deal with the virus. I just found out yesterday that, sadly, my niece, in Los Angeles, is one of them.  I'm so sorry for the hardships this pandemic brings to people across the world. America has not done as well as it could have. Different leadership will have a big impact, and thank goodness, as I have said before, for the hard work of so many health provider teams everywhere. I hope they are getting their vaccine pronto.    

I also hope you enjoyed my poetic effort, with more emphasis on the effort part than on the poetic. Once I got started, I couldn't let it go. 

I'm not going to do a post next Sunday -- will take a week off, especially since no one will have time for it. But I'll be back in the new year! Again, all best wishes.

a statement of fact

post #521        

             All I want today is to speak up for truth.    

            Truth is what keeps us upright. It nourishes us even when it's painful.

            A serious sadness comes from hearing truth abused, again and again.

            It leads to severe harm from the shredding of trust, the next basic part of our being.

            Working together to overcome the pandemic would at least give us something to practice                 in common -- rebuilding together, after truth has been so maligned and trust so                            shattered.             

            You may know where I am headed. 

             

            We have had four years where truth has been severely abused, over and over. 

                     Our nation is in shock.      So many have died.     So many are deceived.  

                     Over 100 legislators and attorney generals have forgotten how to count!

                     What were they thinking?!   Are they ready to discard democracy?

                    Instead, what is left behind are potential threats of violence, and fear, the kind that insinuates itself throughout our daily lives. The world's health suffers from neglect, especially in our United States.  We should have been ahead of the game instead of so behind.

                   The pandemic doesn't care about any of this. 

              

        Look at all the blossoms opening at the same time! Working together! Doing their best! Looking after each other! Trusting where they are. Just showing up (along Sideway Road!)  Celebrating their moment in the sun!  Offering the simple truth of who they are!

 
          Basically, I'm pretty trusting, I have been a truth nut since I was very young, and all the time I try to figure things out. These days I am stumped by how could so many have been conned by our president who is more mean than presidential, more a bully than anything else, and who has been badly damaged along his own life's path.  

        I'm going to publish this now even if I end up deleting it in the morning.  I'm not trying to criticize anyone, but I'd love to see more of us actually thinking this through and examining the pieces.  It's always interesting and important to increase one's understanding of the one precious life we have been given.

 

 

 

missing family

post #520

        I'm a pretty tough cookie, but sometimes it's the pits to not be able to touch -- or be in daily touch with -- my family.  Because of the capricious and nasty virus, not touching is definitely the healthy and necessary thing to do.  However, some days the feeling is weirder than others. SO my advice to someone else would be to own the weirdness, and DO something that "speaks to your condition."  So I'm switching gears for this weekly blog post of mine to (drum roll...  ) FAMILY.  I have spent time with them today by seeking them out within the maze of thousands of photos on my laptop.  I'll be sharing about 18 photos, without giving many names or positions on the family tree. I'm going for the random wonder of who we end up with. (Not everyone is represented here. Therefore I hereby give myself permission to do this again in a second post in the future!)

 

what was on the screen

 

 

 

 and where the face actually was, in my office room! (notice blue curtain...)

 

 

                                       practicing outside distancing last spring ......

Thanks go today to my tolerant family. I feel much better..... I can't wait to surprise you and others again in the future......