It’s hard to believe that today is summer solstice. How can that be already? I feel a little sad that the circle of the seasons seems to turn so fast this time of year. Still I want to wish you a
Happy Summer Solstice
today. We are so fortunate to live here in this world full of green abundance and four seasons. Though it’s been a rainy week I am grateful to be here now and every day.
In the roundel of seasons there is never more than a pause. The rising and falling light never stops, and we are about to be carried on summer winds across the skies. Like a song come to its last refrain, spring turns away and with a backward glance promises to meet us again. The solstice reminds us that everything keeps changing—from the drying wheat on the high plains, to the young, green corn on the prairie, and to the wheeling purple martins of morning and evening. Nature moves into high gear and the towering light moves us toward physical optimum, carrying our spirits along on the One Breath that animates everything.
— Marv & Nancy Hiles, The Almanac of the Soul
This morning I went for a walk around Lake Camelot in Plymouth before the rain arrived. I brought my camera with me but did not bring my long lens because I thought it unlikely that I would see the trumpeter swan family on the lake today. (But I should have brought my long lens because I was wrong about not seeing the swans today.)
As I headed out on a dock on one side of the lake, a couple I met leaving the dock told me that if I looked towards the shore on the left I would see the swan family. Sure enough, as I got to the end of the dock and looked back, there they were! Soon a couple more walkers joined me on the dock and I pointed out the swan family to them. Then a young girl (maybe 8 or 9 years old) headed out to see what I was looking at. I showed her the swan family on the shore and when she saw them she was so excited. She called her friend and her grandparents who were still on the hiking path to head out on the dock and see what she had seen. It was so fun to see the kids’ excitement and hear their squeals of delight. I caught their grandfather’s eye and we smiled at one another enjoying the wonder and awe of the two girls.
Look for the Good
This short interaction with strangers reminded me of how there is so much good in the world along with all of its challenges. Every time I walk at Lake Camelot I feel as if I am among kindred spirits. So many of the hikers are familiar with the trumpeter swan family and look for them every time they come there. The care and kindness I have experienced with these complete strangers lifts my spirits. I love seeing how many people love the trumpeter swans as I do and who come here hoping to simply catch a glimpse of them when they walk here.
This lake which is really more of a large wetlands than a lake, is home to so much life. I feel as if I am part of it all and that it enlarges my spirit simply being here and taking in the beauty of it all.
I can hear the sizzle of newborn stars, and know anything of meaning, of the fierce magic emerging here. I am witness to flexible eternity, the evolving past, and I know we will live forever, as dust or breath in the face of stars, in the shifting pattern of winds.
— Joy Harjo, Secrets From the Center of the World
Making Time for More Photography
As the seasons continue to turn I am working on taking more time to go out to make photographs. I had been feeling a bit sorry for myself lately as I watched friends and family traveling to far flung places across the U.S. and abroad. Because pain issues prevent me from sleeping well in almost all hotel/AirBnB/cabin beds, I am limiting my travel to an occasional overnight somewhere close to home. Though I would love to travel further, it simply doesn’t work for me.
But just because I am not traveling far away doesn’t mean I cannot grow and learn as a photographer. In fact, I am working hard on embracing the beauty of what is here now in my ordinary life. Today, at Lake Camelot I found myself looking more for abstract images rather than the typical nature shots I usually make.
It is fascinating to me to witness that the ideas that I’ve been sharing with my photography students on how to improve their photography are lessons that I am practicing more and more myself. Today I worked on simply moving my body up/down/left/right to see how I could frame a scene differently. It is a powerful tool in learning to compose compelling photographs.
What are you exploring or learning about in your life right now? Are you also noticing the good in small moments or experiences in your life?
I hope that you are enjoying your summer wherever you are.
May you walk in beauty.
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