Monthly Archives: March 2017

Stand Still

Kalispell, Montana

It tells us something about our society that the word “standstill” is synonymous with “impasse.” Yet, to  stand still can be one of our most productive moments. Making photographs enforces standing still, and I see it as reciprocal with nature’s own pace. The insightful photographer Minor White said, “Spirit stands still for the photographer it has chosen.” Often, in seeking a good photograph, I do feel chosen. At a certain moment, in a certain place, a gift is given. One that I now share with you.

Awake!

Dixie, WA

From beneath the shattered debris of winter, new life emerges. Perhaps we have seasons because we need persistent reminders that life is a great wheel that turns round and round. Washington is the only state in the nation where seasonal temperatures have been below normal, so this weekend’s warm weather sent me in search of signs of spring. I was not disappointed.

Singular beauty

Wallowa Lake, OR

We respond immediately when we happen upon a field of wildflowers blooming en masse, but the thrill is just as great when we stumble upon a single, radiant blossom on the forest floor. Our reaction is immediate and heartfelt in both cases, not subject to intermediate parsing by the brain. This says to me we are hard-wired for beauty. Clearly, it is a survival mechanism when we recoil from a snake, but doesn’t our reaction to beauty suggest a similar, but positive survival mechanism? We DO need beauty to survive and thrive, and humankind always has.