A beautiful evening on a lake near my home on the eve of a full moon last week.

Birds Greeting the Evening ©Lynne Buchanan

Amazing evening on the lake as the full moon was rising.  Dragged my kayak down the road and stepped in a pile of red ants as I was putting in, but it was worth the agony of itching for three days.  When I finally got past the mud and weeds, I was drawn to the singing birds in a tree across the lake. I paddled towards them and then glided silently until I was moored in the weeds.  For fifteen minutes or so, I sat there in silence as I watched birds come and go and appreciated their music.  The clouds framing the trees were so perfect, and I was drawn to the way the light hit the new spring growth on the branches and partially submerged twigs and weeds. 

Clouds Painting the Lake ©Lynne Buchanan

I would have sat there for hours, but it was my first time on the lake and I wanted to explore.  I decided to paddle about a bit and find compositions that framed the clouds with their reflections in the water and the mysterious looking sticks scattered among them.   Locals told me it has been awhile since there has been so much water in the lake.  Some sticks were verticals, like bits of leftover trees, and others were arced over forming unusual polyhedrons with their reflections below.  Following these mysterious signs, I eventually ended up in a very dense area of vegetation that was being lit up by the setting sun.  Suddenly, it appeared the twigs were dancing in the mysterious light of the almost dusk.

Jeff Ripple Painting ©Lynne Buchanan

Looking across the lake, I noticed my friend and painter Jeff Ripple hard at work.  The beautiful trees encircling the lake and their reflections framed him perfectly.  I looked through the viewfinder and made a photograph of him in rapt concentration.  Then I made a few more, but soon I noticed the moon rising.  I composed a couple of photographs of that beautiful moonrise, as the colors of the sky intensified.  Remembering to look in all directions, as narrowing our perspective usually limits our horizons, I looked behind me and saw that the colors of the sky and reflections in the water were even more intense.  Then I went back to watching Jeff and the moon.  It was getting darker and darker and I had pretty much given up photographing, when I looked to my right and saw a young alligator right next to me, intently studying what I was doing.   We were all honing our skills of awareness…

Moonrise over the Lake ©Lynne Buchanan

Sunset over the Lake (above)
Curios Alligator (below)

The Importance on Being Happy in Challenging Situations on International Happiness Day

Painted Desert Vista ©Lynne Buchanan
All Rights Reserved

Lately, I have been feeling buried by boxes and have to's and should do's and so many do's.  My marriage is ending, I moved, it's tax time, I am self-employed, so much change that anyone's back would break, and indeed in the midst of moving I injured my shoulder, which isn't a great injury for a photographer.  With the injuries and my burdens, my body became more and more hunched over and my horizons started to shrink, even though I know I am on the brink of stepping into a much more fulfilling life.  Finally, today, I told myself I'd had enough.  It is, after all, International Happiness Day, and all this self-pity is frankly boring even me.  

I decide the hell with all the do's and I went to Jaye Martin's yoga class at the Garden of the Heart Yoga Center in Sarasota.  That was the best decision I could have made for this special day.  The Shiva on the Puja was decorated with Nasturtiums from Jaye's garden and he was in a very up mood.  The theme of his class was choosing to be happy in challenging classes and to help us be happy, we paused after he pose to feel the prana circulating through our bodies.  As we were holding Utkatasana for what seemed like an eternity, Jaye reminded us happiness was a choice.  We did lots of heart opening poses to get ready for backbends.  Then, when we got to arm balances, Jaye asked me to demonstrate a forearm balance holding the legs of a chair.  I was definitely afraid and started to contract.  This is a pose I often do, but I have not done it since my shoulder injury.  I said I was a little apprehensive, but he said if I opened my heart and plugged my shoulder in I would be fine.  I did it, because there is no yoga teacher I trust more than Jaye.  Then I did the pinnacle pose and walked my feet down to the seat of the chair as we worked toward Scorpion pose.  I was shocked that I was doing it, but I decided it was going to help and I was going to be happy about it.  At the end of the class, I realized the last remnants of my shoulder injury were gone.  That definitely put me in a better mood.

No matter what is going on in life, no matter what challenges and disappointments we face, if we decide to be happy in the present moment no matter what is going on in the world, we will feel better and chances are our external circumstances will begin to improve.  Happiness is something that no one or no thing can take away from us.  It is our birthright and our choice.  If we heal within and express the light of our own positivity, it begins to shine on our surroundings and make everything around us more positive and bright.  In fact, when we aren't happy and are out of balance, things start going awry around us.  

The Painted Desert is one of my favorite places on earth, as is the Mojave Desert, or any other desert for that matter.  We think of deserts as being uninhabitable and harsh, a place where nothing grows.  Yet, when you look closely, deserts are teeming with life–beautiful desert flowers, tiny microorganisms, unusual animals that find ways to adapt and live in conditions we would think unimaginable.  When I am in the desert, I am always happy because I am inspired by the unlikely life I find there.  It makes me realize that even the harsh periods in our lives contain the seeds for future flourishing and in fact the flourishing already exists in the seed.  Challenges purify our souls and pave the way for us to experience more love for life purely for its own sake.    

In honor of International Happiness Day, be like Yogi Bhajan (as was described in a story to me by a Kundalini yoga teacher).   Raise your arm and shout right on to every challenge you meet in a joyful voice.  How lucky we are to be able to grow and blossom in a world that often seems hostile and unforgiving.  It is up to us if we choose happiness...

The Need to Become Grounded and Reconnect with Organic Beauty After Dealing with Out of Balance Corporations

Azaleas

This past month has been filled with change for me, as I recently moved my home and relocated to a new area.  Though where I moved to resonates with my soul, there is so much about moving that is challenging.  As I haven't had the courage to move off the grid, it has been necessary to deal with large corporations to tap into the infrastructure of our country, which I previously took for granted.  Living in a small town, getting internet (which I can't live without) and television (which I fortunately never watch) has been near impossible and I have spent countless frustrating hours on the telephone being sent in circles.  Our communications companies have become so large and unwieldy that even their own employees don't know how to navigate the various departments to get the answers they need.  I half-jokingly told them I might need to get a new cell phone plan in order to afford being put on hold for so many hours to sort this situation out.  There is something very wrong with this picture.  

After being in my new home for a a few days buyers remorse started to hit.  Not because of the house or the amazing property that I now call home, but because I have had to talk to people in other cities who control my communication destiny who have no idea where I am, what I need, and which services are even possible.  This disconnect made me feel an incredible need to connect with my environment, especially since all the Azalea bushes on my property are in full bloom.  The north of Florida has received tremendous amounts of rain this year, and it must have helped to create the heathy blossoms that are exploding with color.  I had to go outside and photograph them and immediately I began to feel better.

Walking in my yard was not enough.  On Sunday, I decided this day was decreed long ago to be a day of rest and so I made a trip to the Kanapaha Botanical Gardens, which has the largest bamboo strands in the country.  Looking at bamboo always inspires me.  The colors, the way the light shines on it–especially when it seems to come from within, and all the  delicate leaves that seem to balance the composition in just the right spots.  Unlike corporations, the bamboo seems to clump together and form a unified whole, while still retaining the individuality of each stalk and leaf.  All parts are related and criss cross to form beautiful patterns.  Looking at bamboo always fills me with such a sense of peace and rightful balance.  

Bamboo in Balance

To complete my day, I also rephotographed an amazing Camellia bred my Chuck Ritter. I posted a blog about it the other day, which I illustrated with a photograph taken with my iPhone.  The flower was too gorgeous for me not to try and photograph it with my DSLR.  I made the image below by stacking eight photographs together.  The heart of the flower, the striations of the petals, the rich colors, all were food for my soul.  I stared at it for hours studying its formation and the miracle of its very being–especially this one, bred to such a level of perfection.  Perhaps tomorrow I will be able to go back to the world of corporations and figure out how to make complicated connections instead of reveling in the direct bonds with nature that come so easily to me.

How Stewardship Helps Create Nature's Miracles

Co-Created Camellia

Last night, I was blessed to see this amazing flower (that I photographed with my iPhone) and several more.  They were a gift to my friend Wendy at her birthday party from Chuck Ritter, who recently won best bloom in the Georgia National Fair.  All evening I kept stealing glances of the spectacular blossoms he lovingly bred and raised.  I knew he was totally smitten by Camellias, even more than I am, and when I looked him up on the internet when I got home, I discovered I was correct.  Unfortunately, I do not possess a green thumb and keeping flowers alive has never been my strong suit, which is why I paint and photograph them.  Yet, I love them just the same.  When I look into the heart of a flower, I connect with the  regenerative principle of life.  I experience passion and gratitude for being alive.  And that is when I look at normal Camellias.

Chuck's flowers are different.  They are huge, and boast incredibly rich colors and velvety textures.  Viewing them was a multi-sensory experience I will never forget.  Fortunately for me, Wendy gave me one to take home.  I was mesmerized by it for the rest of the evening, and when I awoke it was the first thing I saw on my bedside table.  What a miracle it was to behold.  This afternoon, I went to the Kanapaha Botanical Gardens, where the Camellia's I loved so much around Valentine's Day were past their prime.  Not only that, I don't think any were every as sumptuous as this flower.  I had to wonder if having seen it would spoil me for other, ordinary Camellias in the future. Hopefully, I will not become jaded and will continue to appreciate every Camellia I see at the start of spring each year.  They are always special to me because they herald the explosion of blossoms throughout the spring and summer that follows the dormant phase of winter.  Yet, I am sure part of me will always dream of being in the presence of such a Camellia as this.

Spending the past twenty-four hours with this beauty made me realize that it's being was no accident.  Chuck clearly loves raising Camellias and takes his job very, very seriously.  His bio said he risked his life savings, marriage, and everything else for his passion for Camellias.   (I think he was joking, but when you love something this much it sometimes does throw other aspects of your life a bit out of balance.  I know.)  This flower would not have come into being without Chucks stewardship and care.  As a breeder, he in fact co-created this miracle.  How wonderful to think that when we align ourselves with nature, hold her in our hearts with love, and toil on her behalf, we can create something even more special than nature might produce alone.  So often, our presence is a detriment to the natural world and our own existence–think genetically modified foods and climate change  It did my heart so much good to see that man can make help create soul-nourishing beauty and positively impact the physical and spiritual worlds.  Thank you Chuck!