So much change in nature in just a few days! It’s a colorful world again. I’m so happy to be alive to enjoy the wonder of these days.
Glorious Springtime
This morning I got up early and went to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. In just a few days it looks like a different place. It was glorious!
The magnolias which were not in bloom at all on Tuesday when I was there, are in full bloom today (Saturday) and some are rapidly dropping petals on the ground. I spent a lot of time photographing my favorite magnolia trees from different angles. They are one of my favorite flowering trees. And I love the scent of magnolia flowers.
I arrived so early that there were a few walkers and a couple of other photographers wandering around, but most of the time I had wonderful solitude for my wandering and photographing. By the time I left the Arboretum at about 9:00 AM a steady stream of cars was arriving to enjoy the beautiful day. I was glad that I got up early for two reasons. The light was spectacular when I first arrived, and I love the place when it’s quiet and not full of people and cars.
This was the first time I used my new color checker to help assist with setting color balance in my photographs. I had heard about it for some time but not thought it was worth the money. But then last week I saw it in use at a photo seminar I attended and decided that it was worth it and that it could make my editing much easier.
I love it! In addition I finally bought a calibration tool for my monitor and used it for the first time this week. What a difference it makes! I can’t believe it’s taken me all these years to finally invest in the tool. (Well, yes I can. Photography gear is expensive and there is always another gadget, camera, lens, or “greatest thing since sliced bread” to buy. I try to spend wisely and stick with the basics.)
Now for something different…
I subscribe to an online newsletter called Daily Good. Every day without fail, a newsletter with an inspiring article arrives in my mailbox. Some days I read the summary in the email but don’t bother to read the full article. Other days I am intrigued and read the entire article. This week I received a link to an article that is so tender, real and heartfelt that I just have to share it with friends and family.
I don’t know how to describe it except that it has all the pathos and hope that one can find in being alive. It was beautiful, true, and hopeful. Here is a link to Last Lecture by Mick Cochrane. I highly recommend that you do as he suggests and also look up his sister’s website and Click where it says “Click here for unconditional love.” His sister’s articles and story are so inspiring and because she’s a judge in Minneapolis family and law court, there’s a home-town connection for me. As a long-time meditator I found her post called “Can this be OK?” very moving.
Flying High
While I was at the Arboretum Saturday, I periodically heard geese calling high overhead. Just before I left I looked up and captured this photograph. I don’t know about you, but whenever I see birds flying overhead my heart soars with them. Though I’m not a birder, intent on seeing as many different birds as I can and marking them off on a life list, I am a bird-lover always looking to see which birds are in the neighborhood. And somehow the sight of birds taking flight always always makes my own heart take flight.
Here’s one more great thing about glorious springtime in Minneapolis. There are no mosquitoes yet! By Memorial Day the mosquitoes will be out and about and mosquito-magnets like me will have to wear protective clothing, insect repellent, or stay indoors.
What makes your heart take flight? And what do you love about glorious springtime?
May you walk in beauty.
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