Tag Archives: water

Backcountry Gallery

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Photography and nature go so well together. For the photographer it means getting into some of the most beautiful scenery on earth. Lighting, background, equipment, and split second timing can make a good photograph quite spectacular. Every day I get an email with a link by PhotoBotos with a wonderful image and a description by the artist about how and where it was taken.

From PhotoBotos I was drawn to the nature photography of Steve Perry of Backcountry Gallery. When I was planning a trip to see my sister in Columbus, Ohio, I discovered that he would be present during a photo exhibit at the National Center for Nature Photography not far from Toledo!

On Saturday, Sept. 1, my sister Madeleine, her husband Richard, and I drove from Columbus to Berkey to meet the artist (and his wife Rose).

I was particularly drawn to two prints that feature water. Fall Cascades in the Smokies reminds me of similar places I’ve loved.. Color, sound, and texture bring moments of peace and plenty to we who thirst. Dead Horse Point Lightning Strike holds a promise of rain to a thirsty desert. Steve dared to stay for a few more shots while his son Grant was yelling at him to take cover. The two images hold such contrasting viewpoints of one of our most precious resources. As Texas and much of the country experience devastating drought, crop failure, and fire, the increasing demand for water becomes ever more critical.

Now I’m on Steve Perry’s website as his first visitor! click the following link:

backcountrygallery.com.

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Kairos

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Kairos has found me at last in this time, this space, this moment of reflection. Cool morning, warm sun streaming through my favorite window.

Having moved non-stop it seems from holidays, son’s wedding, conference, sister-time, ministers’ retreat (with work to fill “spare time”), pastoral care, a couple of sermons squeezed in, meetings, plans, and more, means that personal time has been limited at best. Not a half day off with no work that had to be done, to the point that it did not qualify as true rest–just another thing to wedge between A & B and on toward Z. I have not had/blocked out enough time to give my soul a chance to catch up.

So I pause without agenda–except to let everything go–for the next few hours. Let this sunshine recharge my weakened batteries for a spell. The battery warning light was not glowing orange but red. Reserves have been tapped frequently to get through specific tasks or responsibilities only to leave me depleted at the end. Complete a task–barely–and move on before taking time to sweep my spirit clean. Float free like wind and water.

So let my spirit clear up with these blue skies after a gray day; let this breeze flow through me; let this poem speak to my heart; let this walk bring me down to earth; let this music dance for me until I can dance, too.