The Ocean

"The Ocean: A body of water occupying about two-thirds of a world made for man -  who has no gills."
Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), USA

Interesting!

Sunset on Kauai

"With hurricanes, tornadoes, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thurnderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Alligiance?" Jay Leno

Well said, Jay! If you don't want to say the word God, then don't say it, but don't expect it to be removed simply because you don't believe in God or don't want it there. It's not abusing your rights by leaving it in, but it is abusing ours by being forced to remove it. If you don't like it, just do what the kids do these days, and put your hands over your ears and say, blah, blah, blah.

Riding the Waves

Wind surfers don't try to tame the power of the ocean. They learn how to use that power to achieve their goals. We can do the same thing when we encounter obstacles, whether it be weather, difficult people or business issues. We need to analyze the situation to see if there's some way to turn the problems into avenues to success.

When my husband and I were in Kauai a few months ago, we spent part of our last day there watching wind surfers. We watched these guys fly into the air, come down on their feet and continue to ride the waves. They were absolutely remarkable! My primary challenge was to catch the leaps into the air, while still keeping the sense of what was guiding their actions. There had to be a trade-off sometimes between taking a close-up shot & the sense of place shot that included the parachute that was pulling them. I ended up taking a lot of both, so I could document the power of the waves & the skill of the men who were riding them.

Eyes & Beauty

"If eyes were made for seeing, then beauty is its own excuse for being." Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), USA

This is Spouting Horn on the island of Kuaui. It's a beautiful spot and these picture shows a little different perspective than what you'd usually see. As is often the case with nature photography, particularly seascapes, I don't think you could ever get two pictures alike at this location. The waves are constantly changing & the horn spouts indiscremently and unpredictably. In situations like this, you have to focus and shoot right before you think the water is going to shoot up; otherwise you won't get the shot. Nature photography can be challenging but, in my opinion, it's definitely worth the time and effort.

Beauty of the Sea

"I asked the earth, I asked the sea and the deeps, among the living animals, the things that creep. I asked the winds that blow, I asked the heavens, the sun, the moon, the stars and all the things that stand at the doors of my flesh ....

My question was the gaze I turned to them

Their answer was their beauty."

St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430), North Africa

The beauty of the sea is boundless. When we were in Hawaii recently, I could have spent days just gazing at the sea, each wave being different from the one before. Whether or not I took pictures was irrelevant, because it was the beauty of the sea that was important. I did, however, take as many pictures as I could, because I wanted to document the beauty & share it with those who weren't there to experience it.

Don't Weep For Me

Today's blog is dedicated to a friend who just lost her mother. I lost my mom over three years ago and still miss her terribly. I don't think we ever get over losing a loved one, but time does ease the pain. I hope that, in some small way, this poem helps with that process. God bless you and your family.

Do not stand by my grave and weep.

I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow,

I am the diamond glints upon the snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain and

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush,

I am that swift uplifting rush,

Of quiet birds in circling flight.

I am the soft star that shines at night.

Do not stand by my grave and cry.

I am not there. I did not die.

Live Every Minute

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." Mahatma Gandhi

My mom didn't live as if she was going to die the next day, but she certainly learned as if she was going to live forever. She was constantly reading, listening to informational shows on the radio, watching documentaries on TV, etc. She started emailing when she was close to 80 and was still making greeting cards, on the computer, for friends who needed a cheerful note, when she was 83 years old. She wasn't content to just sit and watch the world go by. She was constantly absorbing knowledge and sharing that knowledge with others. And, most importantly, she didn't merely exist for the 84 years that she was on this earth. She lived every minute of it.