A thousand words (or more)

Someone made a comment to me last week that gave me a moment’s pause. In an offhand, joking manner, he mentioned that I’ve posted more photographs than insights on my blog of late. I’m sure he meant no slight, but to be honest, my feathers got a little ruffled.

Harrumph! His point’s independently verifiable, but the implied assertion is mistaken. I’m not posting pictures willy-nilly, I promise you. And I’m not being lazy. It’s just that…well, sometimes the words flow more easily than others. And when words fail, pictures help illustrate my innermost thoughts and feelings. This is one of those times. So here we are again: another trip through metaphor land, another show-and-tell.
 
Life’s been a little hectic around here lately, so my husband and I sought refuge in our favorite oasis. Sometimes you just need to see things from a different vantage point, you know? Pictured here, a great egret surveys the situation.

Beep! Beep! Even roadrunners need a respite now and again.

I don’t think of a desert oasis as a typical habitat for mallards, do you? I don’t know how they got here, but this pair of ducks accommodated quite well to their unusual circumstances. Would that I could be so zen!

High above the desert floor, a red-naped sapsucker forages for food. He pauses for a moment’s rest, perhaps pondering his next move. But before too long, he’s knock-knock-knocking again. Persistence, thy middle name is woodpecker.  

There’s a time for high-flying, and a time for hanging out. I’m slow to learn the lessons this black-crowned night heron apparently knows.

Sometimes it seems as if I’m on an lonely chase, falling further and further behind…

…but this, too, is a matter of perspective. Truth is, I’m surrounded by cheerleaders, and I’m keeping a steady pace.


This pair of photos are from the endangered species merry-go-round at the Living Desert.

I also took a stroll through my backyard garden this past weekend, and I’m so glad I did. Tucked into a tangled mess of citrus leaves, I discovered this magical surprise…

From my picture window, I can easily watch this Costa’s hummingbird’s comings and goings. And someday, if I’m really lucky, I’ll see her hatchlings fly.

It’s been a long while since I’ve practiced the things I learned in my photography class, but there’s a lesson in that, too.
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  1. Speaking for myself, I love your photos! I especially liked the endangered species merry-go-round. Sometimes I feel saturated with all the words on the Internet: blogs, FB, more blogs, message boards…pictures are themselves an oasis for me, something to gaze at and drink in the beauty and escape from the noise of other peoples’ thoughts.

    • Sometimes I feel saturated with all the words on the Internet: blogs, FB, more blogs, message boards…pictures are themselves an oasis for me, something to gaze at and drink in the beauty and escape from the noise of other peoples’ thoughts.

      Thank you *so much* for articulating so well the way that I’ve been feeling of late. I’ve got a lot going on right now, much of it stressful, and I don’t always have room for more words. But pictures are a refuge…they help make the world fall away, at least for me. In allowing myself to get lost in photographs and illustrations, I’m better able to restore my sense of balance.

      Oh! And wouldn’t it be fun to ride that merry-go-round together? 🙂

    • Thanks, Robin. You made my heart swell with your kind words. And I suspect you already know how much of a fan girl I am, when it comes to *your* photographs! xo

      • I remember my great-grandma Harris telling me of this prophecy she heard about there would be a time in the future that the world would be so polluted that not an animal including birds would be on it. It saddened her so much she always made sure she had a canary or some bird in her home. She loved birds and couldn’t imagine a world without them. I thought I’d add this to my WIP and a girl who loves watching the vids of them and wishing for a world that still had hummingbirds.

        • I love that you’re incorporating your great-grandma’s stories into your own writing. It’s a poignant (if terrifying) prediction, and I’m looking forward to reading your interpretation.

  5. For me, one of the best parts about blogs is getting to see where other people live. I love to look at photos of landscapes, animal life, etc. And I like to post pics, too. It’s nice to think that writers live in so many different places. I mean, I know that, of course, but it’s still good to actually see. So, today I’m writing this from soggy, cold NYC. And you’re writing from a place that couldn’t be too much more different. But, we’re both still writing, and sharing, and “being” in this world. And I like that.

    • we’re both still writing, and sharing, and “being” in this world. And I like that.

      Our worlds may be far apart, geographically speaking, but I believe we share many of the same thoughts and ideals. I like that very much. And I adore your photos! It’s fun to see the world through your lens!

    • Thank you! It’s a fun challenge, sometimes, to express my thoughts in pictures. And sometimes a simple photograph can speak more clearly (and directly) than I can.

  7. I love your photos, especially your egret and heron! We had major bird concentrations when we lived in Charleston (it looks like you do, too), something I loved. Now that it’s frozen solid up here, it’s nice to see your pictures and remember that there is life out there somewhere on the planet still! 🙂

    • I’m so glad to share “my” birds with you! And the sunshine in which they’re standing… 🙂

      I’ll bet you’ve got enclaves of birds, huddled together in the snowy trees and bushes. Have you tried putting out suet or feeders?

      • We should do that. I see magpies sometimes (at least, I think that’s what they are–they’re what we called Elster in Germany) and a bunch of little…somethings huddle on our roof sometimes. But the swans (yes, swans!) all migrated away in fall, and it’s waaaaay too cold for much else!

    • Oh, I love that you see this collection of birds as a “visual meditation.” Such a lovely thought. (And lol, I’m not just saying that because I think of them in a similar way.)

  9. Lovely pictures, lovely metaphors, lovely you. Glad you found a respite.

    And I so want to ride that endangered species merry go round!

    And look forward to possible humming bird babies, seen through your unique eyes.

    • That merry-go-round is new. It isn’t even open yet, so I was really excited to stumble upon it. And to spot the hummingbird first…well! I take that as a very good sign. 🙂

  11. I am bothered on your behalf by his thoughtless comment but then I am straddling my own picket fence so perhaps it hit too close to home for me.

    I worry that I am thinking more about art than about words right now.

    Creativity comes out in many different ways and I think our job is to be a conduit, not a filter.

    Express yourself. That’s all that matters.

    • Creativity comes out in many different ways and I think our job is to be a conduit, not a filter.

      Well said! We have a lot of tools at our disposal, thank goodness. I say we express ourselves as we see fit. Whatever helps us bring our ideas into the world…whatever gives them shape and form…whatever feels right to us at any given time, it’s all good.

    • Thank you so much!I can think of no greater privilege than being able to share a friendly conversation with you (with words *or* pictures). And that my pictures brought warmth and sunshine into your home? I’m smiling at the very thought.

  14. Is that a little hummingbird on its nest in the last photo? How wonderful.

    As for the comment from last week, people should realize that a journal changes and evolves, and the way the journal keeper chooses to express herself changes too. I love your photos very much, and I find *lots* of insights in your words and pictures.

    • Yep, that’s the mama hummingbird who’s taken up temporary residence near me. 😉

      We’ve talked about this before, but I have to say it again: I love the way you illustrate a metaphor with photographs. I get lost in your blog posts whenever you do that. 🙂

  15. Looking at the “recent” picture taken in your backyard while observing the ridiculous swirl of white that is currently attacking mine is making me very bitter. Or jealous. Or both. Insert picture here of penguin.

  17. Pfff, words are so overrated. 😉 It’s the heart behind the words that speaks most eloquently.

    I love your photos…and I so want to ride that endangered merry go round! xo

    • Words can certainly be overrated! It’s such a cacaphonous world right now; I find myself longing for silent sanctuary. I found it in the desert oasis, and I love revisiting that place via my collection of photographs. They’re not perfect by any means, but I can’t think of a single form of expression that is. Except, as you mentioned, the heart behind our messages.

      (You should come visit…we’ll ride that merry-go-round together!!)

    • Thank you, Sarah. xo

      I do get a lot of joy out of photographing the things that catch my eye. And when my pictures manage to capture someone else’s fancy…well! That makes my heart sing. 🙂

  19. Your photos always make me aware of the many things out in the vast world we call earth. I can visit other places through the eyes of others and take in the wonders and glory of Gods wonderful and beautiful world. Sometimes words are simply letters put on paper but pictures are another ones eyes to see what is out there. I tend to post photo’s as a way to let others see what has been put before my eyes. I love the printed words also and am waiting for your great unveiling of those words you have in your heart to be put in print.

    • I discover that joy in your photos, too, PapaDan. There’s so much to this world around us that we can’t see with our own eyes. How lovely, then, that we can view them through the eyes of cherished friends.

      (I posted more pictures of “my” oasis today, in case you’re interested…)

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