Here are a wonderful image, a beautiful poem, and a Rumi quote to enjoy. There are words that speak only in silence.
Squireles in the snow.
These are incredible pictures. The photographer was patient to get all these wonderful and humourous photos. Fact is sometimes better than fiction. Without photoshopping, these images point to the innate curiousity and desire animals have for fun.
Monday Musings: Elsewhere
The short Rumi verse is accompanied by a wonderful picture. The trees blend with the sky and clouds.
My soul is from elsewhere,
I’m sure of that,
and I intend to end up there.
-Rumi
Wild Geese
Mary Oliver wrote this beautiful poem about sensing and perceiving Nature through direct experiences. Maurice Merleau Ponty wrote about the phenomenology of perception which is the about the way body and its senses act as gateways in perceiving the world. Our body is not an only a thing, it is an object that researches the world.
When we “the soft animal of your body” experience and sense Nature, we are in Nature. We have images for our imagination that fill our hearts and souls so fully. We belong in ways that we cannot as an observer standing outside. We are part of a community that includes all of Nature.
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
Thursday’s Special: Breaking the Rules
Rules build boundaries. Sometimes we have to break the rules and find out what is outside those walls. It is always easy to play it safe, but so much more fun when we take risks and it works.
I was thinking about breaking the rules…specifically and in general, and this photo seems to fit the theme. If it was me (instead of the snowman), I would probably consider a couple of things before getting to the action. For example, not cutting the branch you are standing under. Or how safe it is to hold the saw barely with your fingertips. What about staying around after all the snow in the town is gone for good…also against the rules, isn’ t it?!
On the second thought…”If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun!” – Katharine Hepburn
Be inspired and inspire!
More about Paula and her Thursday’s Special Challenge here:
Poem: Quiet Flame
Here is a wonderful poem. It reminded me of Judy Brown’s poem Fire. There are spaces between the logs where the fire finds additional fuel and adds to the different colours.
Simply stunning
This is such a simple photo. Yet, at the same time there is complexity and mystery hidden in the folds of the rose petals.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Orange (Find beauty everywhere)
This post begins with a beautiful van Gogh quote and an inspiring mix of wonderful images finding beauty everywhere.
“If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere.”
~ Vincent van Gogh
There are so many small beautiful orange things under the big orange sky. 🙂
WPC: Orange: What’s not to love about orange? It’s vibrant. It’s cheerful. It makes a statement.
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von Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
I follow Lis`blog and do not always know what the text means. The pictures are always so serene looking. Today, there is text I understood from von Goethe. It is a wonderful thought to think that someone who is miles away can be with us and complete the world for us. “The world is so empty if one thinks only of mountains, rivers & cities; but to know someone who thinks & feels with us, & who, though distant, is close to us in spirit, this makes the earth for us an inhabited garden.”
Happy Birthday, Albert! | Catherine M Johnson
Happy Birthday, Albert! | Catherine M Johnson.
I am a big Albert Einstein fan and it is his birthday today. I enjoy his eccentric behaviour and wild hair.
Several years ago, a student asked who the guy was in a poster in our classroom.
Without hesitating, I said, “My Dad!” A second student expressed skepticism, but I answered with “Look at him. He has wild hair, is eccentric, and tells great stories. Its my Dad!”.
A third student responded, “It’s Albert Einstein. His name is on the poster.”
For the rest of my teaching years, students, parents, and I were always careful when I began to say something about my Dad. I clarified whether it was my real dad or my figurative dad. The two had interesting quotes in common.
My real Dad would say, “When you stop beating your head against the wall it feels better.” I shared that with students when we talked about Einstein’s definition of insanity: “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
Teacher as Transformer 