Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged colors, imagination, Inspiration, leaves, memories, nature, Photography, stellar events, urban landscape, walking on August 6, 2014| 3 Comments »
… I do see nebula …
… and supernovas …
… and all sorts of stellar events …
… all within a single leaf, found on the ground yesterday, as I walked home.
And as I carried that single leaf in one hand and all of my groceries in the other hand, I had to chuckle because I was reminded of how my parents worried when I went out walking by myself. They thought that my head would be lost in the clouds. How right they were. Anyway … have a good day, folks. 😉
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, On the Road, tagged Arnold Arboretum, bees, Branches, Inspiration, monotype, nature, Photography, urban landscape, walking on May 11, 2014| 2 Comments »
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, On the Road, tagged Arnold Arboretum, Branches, Inspiration, Japanese maple, monotype, nature, Photography, silhouette, spring, trees, urban landscape, walking on May 11, 2014| 1 Comment »
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, On the Road, tagged blossoms, Branches, colors, Inspiration, landscape, nature, Photography, Somerville, spring, trees, walking on April 27, 2014| 3 Comments »
By on the road, I mean walking around my Somerville neighborhood. Still chilly, but felt good to be out of the house and seeing what spring has to offer.
Posted in Inspiration, On the Road, tagged Amazing Grace, Andrew Forsthoefel, arts, compassion, Cowbird Daily, imagination, Inspiration, music, painting, poetry, reflections, storytelling, travel, walking on April 23, 2014| 5 Comments »
One day I found myself walking along, looking at the world around me. I passed a stand of birch and I found myself thinking, if I only knew how to paint, I’d paint these trees. I kept moving along, but the sight of the trees remained in my mind and I found myself thinking, if only I could write music then maybe I could write a song about the trees. But I know I don’t write music and so I started thinking, if only I could sing then maybe I could find someone else to write the music, but that would only work if I wasn’t shy. Now, I don’t really think I can sing but sometimes when I’m sure I’m alone, some kind of sound passes between my lips. And so that day, with all those if’s put out into the world, I decided to go ahead and try that singing thing. The following soft words emerged in some kind of rhythm.
If I knew how to paint
I’d paint these trees
How the wind does make them sway
Their leaves sunlit
Their branches bent
While high above soars a bird
Nothing Earth-shattering but it did make me feel good to sing and then hum the song for a bit. Only later did I realize that the tune (if that’s the right word) that I used for my trees was for that of Amazing Grace, a point made clear when I viewed one of today’s Cowbird Daily stories. The video short is an excerpt from the journey of another walker, Andrew Forsthoefel. I hope you have a chance to view and listen to the video for yourself. And by the way, that picture above … there must have been a day when I forgot that I couldn’t paint. 😉
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged bird, blossoms, colors, flowers, Inspiration, nature, Photography, Somerville, spring, urban landscape, walking on April 22, 2014| 3 Comments »
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged colors, flowers, gardening, Inspiration, nature, Photography, plants, Ricky's Flower Market, Somerville, walking on April 13, 2014| 2 Comments »
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged beach, Christmas, Inspiration, landscape, nature, Photography, Revere Beach, walking, winter on December 26, 2013| 4 Comments »
After eating all of that bread mentioned in the previous post, let alone all of the other holiday goodies, a walk was necessary. We chose a favorite spot, Revere Beach. No snow upon the ground, but it was cold as evidenced by the water frozen in shells upon the shore. A bright sun illuminated everything even if it did not warm.
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, On the Road, tagged beach, charitable giving, Inspiration, kickstarter, maps, nature, Photography, Revere, Revere Walking Map, WalkBoston, walking on December 9, 2013| 2 Comments »
Thanks to friends and family from around the world, I’ve got quite a growing collection of shells. Most of the shells that I have collected myself I have done so along Revere Beach in Revere, MA. That beach has become a favorite haunt to walk for relaxation and exercise. I never know what I might find in the sand and along the water’s edge. Moving forward, I hope to venture further afield into the heart of the culturally rich and diverse community. That is in part why I love and support the idea of a Revere Walking Map being created. I do use them. Watch the video below to understand the behind the scenes making of such a map and/or visit this page to see the opportunities and levels for giving. A great cause especially if you live or travel out this way.
P.S. Here’s how I’ve used a similar walking map to help make my way around Somerville and its parks.
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, On the Road, tagged books, dublin, gratitude, Inspiration, ireland, landscape, nature, Photography, travel, walking, welcome on November 27, 2013| 5 Comments »
This is a limited edition book created for a few folk who made our recent stay in Dublin, Ireland so lovely. It can take a lot of energy to welcome strangers into your home and treat them like family, which is exactly what one couple did. And it can take a lot of energy to welcome visitors from around the world to your home country and make sure those visitors experience a sense of place, which is exactly what conference organizers managed to do. Once they have books in hands, I hope they enjoy the images that could not have been compiled without their generosity, good-spirits and great walking maps. Thank you. 😉
