Sacred Stone

Carved in sacred stone

upon temples of the Nile,

the history of Kings.

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I've just discovered a new haiku meme! When I saw that the prompt word for today was 'sacred', I immediately thought of Egypt.
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For more haiku, may I suggest you stop by
Haiku Heights at the following link...

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http://haiku-heights.blogspot.com/

Sandy Shadows

All week long, our little dog waits patiently for Sunday. While she is walked several times each day, Sundays are for adventure, given over to shady groves, woodland trails and the joy of new things to explore!
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We're fortunate to have many parks within easy reach. A favourite with us all is on the edge of the Fraser River, underneath the Patullo Bridge.

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Its main appeal is a huge mountain of sand that borders the park. It is not picturesque sand in an idyllic beach setting, but is strictly utilitaran...a great mound piled onto an empty lot in an industrial site to prepare the ground for construction.
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No matter...Meeghan and I love scampering through sandy dunes of any sort, (though it's more accurate to say she scampers and I plod clumsily behind her)!

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I love to watch as long afternoon

shadows mark deep, dark creases across the dunes. The drifting sand with its peaks and swirls mimics perfectly the landscape of the world's great deserts.

I grab my camera to get pictures of Meeghan as she and her shadow lope happily across the rippled sand.
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There is something about this sand that reminds me of the moon with its cool, pocked surface and oddly shaped formations. Of course, my imagination has a tendency to run away with itself.
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I see much beauty in this cluster of weeds, the light tracing spindly shadows outward from each plant, as if penned by a calligraphic hand.
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The shifting silver sand and sharp shadows are a perfect place to explore the play of light and dark that I so love.

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Many thanks to 'Hey, Harriet' for hosting this Sunday event! To see more shadowy shots, do drop by her page at...

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http://heyharriet.blogspot.com/

A Canadian Autumn

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Autumn strikes a pose,

that we might better admire
her fine russet gown…

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Indian summer
is a callous lover who

heeds not winters call...

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Summer sheds her green

attire to wrap herself in

cloaks of burnished gold...
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I am linking this post to the Thursday Think Tank Prompt at Poets United. To check out more poems, please visit the link below...
http://poetryblogroll.blogspot.com/

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The photo effects above are courtesy of Funny Photo at the following link...

http://funny.pho.to/

International Peace Day 2010

Haiku for Peace

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'Neath skin dark or light

beats a heart that knows only

the colour of love...

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Children are the same the world over. The lively and curious youngsters I met in this African village in 2006 were kindred spirits to the giggling, rambunctious kids who frolicked through a shared childhood with my own offspring in Canada.

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To a child, each day is an adventure and life is always more about sharing than dividing. I propose this may be a recipe for serenity at any age...

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On this visit, one grinning young lad clasped onto my arms and would not let go. As he snuggled in close against me, I was reminded of my much-loved sons at that age, bursting as they were with the curious mixture of independence and affection that changed them from moment to moment as they grew into their own skin.
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How can it be that the complete acceptance we embrace in childhood so often dissipates by the time we reach adulthood?
I have not found the anwer to this question that so desperately needs explained. If we seekers of the world work together, is it not possible we may gain back the ability to trust and to share wholeheartedly? I have to believe it can be so.
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September 21st, 2010 is

International Peace Day.

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I am posting this haiku simultaneously here and on my other blog, Imagination Lane, to join my voice to the worldwide prayer that we may one day put an end to the madness of war...and that peace may then allow us to begin the long journey toward healing our fragile world.

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Let this peace be our bequest to the children of

today...and their promise for tomorrow.

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Namaste

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If you would like to know more about these wonderful youngsters, you might want to check out some earlier posts...

http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/07/dreams-of-africa.html http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/08/africas-true-treasure.html
http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/07/giraffe-rescue-centre-kenya.html
http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/07/forgotten-generation-aids-orphans-in.html

Weird Water

As I went through digital folders of beach photos I've taken to see what I might post for Watery Wednesday, my attention was drawn to the shots of water that had moved beyond being only a puddle or pool, and become a different entity altogether.

By shooting close-up and excluding the context of sand and shells, some of the resulting pictures seem to me to resemble abstract paintings. The colours and textures look plastered on as if some artist had gone mad with his jars of moulding paste and acrylic paints!

Most of these shots were taken both in White Rock, and at Semiahmoo Beach a short distance further down the shore. Semiahmoo is always a favourite spot for us to visit, as it is one of the few places that allow dogs onto the sand in summer...a rare chance for them to frolic through the water with their guardians, and dig sandy holes. Very much appreciated by those of us who are dog-lovers...and who always clean up after our pets so we'll be welcomed back!

Sunlight on the water creates an effect that I think resembles the marbelized end papers on old books.
Ripples, reflections and a radiant light are things that always will catch my eye.

This picture makes me smile, with it's effervescence and immediacy, as if the wave might leap out and splash me at any moment.

By contrast, this cool study in light and dark perfectly reflects the tranquility of the pond in Watershed Park where it was taken.
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It has been a wonderful summer for water photos, and now that Fall is here and the rains have begun, there will definitely be no shortage of winter watery photos!!

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I'm linking this post to Watery Wednesday! For more photos that are damp, doused and drenched check out the link below!
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http://waterywednesday.blogspot.com/
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International Peace Day 2010

Haiku for Peace

.

'Neath skin dark or light

beats a heart that knows only

the colour of love...

.

Children are the same the world over. The lively and curious youngsters I met in this Masai village in 2006 were kindred spirits to the giggling, rambunctious kids who frolicked through a shared childhood with my own offspring in Canada.

.
To a child, each day is an adventure and life is always more about sharing than dividing. I propose this may be a recipe for serenity at any age...

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.
On this visit, one grinning young lad clasped onto my arms and would not let go. As he snuggled in close against me, I was reminded of my much-loved sons at that age, bursting as they were with the curious mixture of independence and affection that changed them from moment to moment as they grew into their own skin.
.

How can it be that the complete acceptance we embrace in childhood so often dissipates by the time we reach adulthood?
I have not found the anwer to this question that so desperately needs explained. If we seekers of the world work together, is it not possible we may gain back the ability to trust and to share wholeheartedly? I have to believe fervently it can be so.
.

.

.

September 21st, 2010 is

International Peace Day.

.

I am posting this haiku simultaneously here and on my other blog, The Imaginative Traveler, to join my voice to the worldwide prayer that we may one day put an end to the madness of war...and that peace may then allow us to begin the long journey toward healing our fragile world.
.

Let this peace be our bequest to the children of today
...and their promise for tomorrow.

.

Namaste

If you would like to know more about these wonderful youngsters, you might want to check out some earlier posts on The Imaginative Traveler...

http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/07/dreams-of-africa.html http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/08/africas-true-treasure.html
http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/07/giraffe-rescue-centre-kenya.html
http://theimaginativetraveler.blogspot.com/2010/07/forgotten-generation-aids-orphans-in.html

Egyptian Shadows

As my last post was of Egyptian skies, I thought to continue with more of this country's beauty for Shadow Shot Sunday.

There is a wonderful luminosity to the light in Egypt as it reflects off handhewn columns and ripples over sand underfoot. Everthing the sun touches here turns golden, contrasting sharply with the dim inner spaces that sunlight doesn't reach.

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Ancient temples are this photographers's dream, affording perfect studies in sun and shadow...

light against dark.

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The Temple of Horus at Edfu

I became fascinated by patterns formed as sunlight struck the ornate pillars and swept across deeply etched hieroglyphic images.
Kom Ombo Temple, Aswan

Moving along pillared halls was like walking with giants. I marvelled at the height and breadth of the columns, each one precisely carved by the master craftsmen who built these temples many centuries ago.
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Karnak Temple, Luxor

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Kom Ombo Temple, Aswan

As if the decorated columns were not sufficiently beautiful, they are topped by magnificent capitols,carved into breathtaking swirls and flourishes.
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These temples were once painted in brilliant royal hues of blue and red. Occasionally, one lifts one's eyes to spot a majestic falcon on an archway overhead, wings spread wide to protect his pharaoh, feathers still bearing traces of the blazing turquoise and gold that once made it soar.

How astounding it is to stand in these decorated halls built for the glorification of kings and gods!

Hypostyle Hall,

Temple of Luxor,

Luxor

Medinet Habu,

Mortuary Temple of Ramses III,

Luxor

Time and pollution have faded the brilliant colurs and worn gouges into the sandstone, but nothing will ever completerly diminish the magic or the magnificence of Ancient Egypt's treasures...

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Many thanks to 'Hey, Harriet' for hosting this Sunday event! To see more, do drop by her page at...
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http://heyharriet.blogspot.com/
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Egyptian Skies

In Egypt, the sun is unrelenting. With negligible rainfall, few clouds mar the blue perfection of its skies and the heat is a presence you can reach out and touch.

Sunset over the Nile

We visited Egypt at the peak of summer when daytime temperatures were in excess of 40 degrees Celsius, (105 degrees Fahrenheit), and the evenings cooled down only marginally.

The Sphinx
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The capital city, Cairo and its surrounding area, is home to seventeen million people. Roads are a driving nightmare as millions of tightly-packed trucks and cars jostle for space, spreading out in in numerous wide lanes that follow no order we could discern.
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As a result of this density, a blanket of smog shrouds the city always. On the Giza Plateau, we were told this was a good day and we were lucky to have clear skies to see the view.
The Giza Plateau looking across the Nile River to Cairo.
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Of course, stifling heat, traffic madness and the ever-present din of car horns could not detract from the majesty of the Pyramids. It was easy, on that expanse of plateau, to imagine life along the Nile when pharaohs ruled, and these pyramids were built to hold their remains.

The Valley of The Kings lies on the West Bank of the Nile. Ancient Egyptians believed that, as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, so should man live on the East Bank of the Nile and be buried on the West.

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The skies here were clearer, and the temperature even higher as the valley held tightly onto the sun's heat.

Climbing ever-deeper into the burial tombs of kings, the air shimmering with the heat and humidity generated by the hundreds of tourists that pressed around me, I felt my heart fill with a delight and satisfaction that surpassed any thought of discomfort.

After a lifetime fascination with Egyptology, I was at last following the footsteps of pharaohs...and it was magnificent!
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I’m linking this post to ‘Looking At The Sky Friday’, graciously hosted by CrAzY Working Mom at the link below. Do stop by for skies that will inspire!

http://www.crazyworkingmom.com/

Hallelujah

The poetry site I belong to referenced Leonard Cohen today, and I thought to repost a piece I wrote earlier in the year...

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We do not expect to find magic in each day, and most certainly not in our workday. We perceive magic to be fleeting and capricious...feel ourselves blessed by the rare moments of enchantment that transcend the ordinary and bring joy to the everyday. Not for a second do we imagine we could engineer such a moment, but only count ourselves lucky if grace on occasion touches our lives to create something special.
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I was granted magic on my lunch hour today. Lured outside by the cloudless sky and soft air, I gathered up my iPod and settled on a bench beneath a tree. I could smell a faint trace of last year's mulch, mixed richly with the fresh scent of new green sprouts. The sun shot through the leaves, dappling my bare arms with twisting trails of light and shadow.

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Without having to think about it, I brought up a song written by Leonard Cohen and performed with breathtaking purity by k.d. lang. I closed my eyes, the better to listen with all of my heart and all my attention, oblivious to everything but the power and the emotion of the moment.

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At once melancholic, yet filled with the ache of possibility, this is a song that speaks of being totally and vibrantly alive...of experiencing life in all its glory and all its pain...the two poles forever indivisible in our time on earth. I felt its heartbreak like it was my own, and soared with joy that such beauty could be coaxed out of a voice and a soul.

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For a brief time, I was freeded from the petty and the mundane. The world was wide and wonderful...and I was dancing madly in the midst of it all.

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Hallelujah, indeed...

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My Irish Uncle

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A hand held out..a
glimpse of other lives I might
one day make my own…
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In a childhood laced with strife, my Uncle Milford laid before me his art books and music so that I might know there was much in life that was beautiful. I have never forgotten the generosity of spirit that promised me a brighter future…
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I'm linking this post to the Thursday Think Tank Prompt at Poets United. For more poetry, please check out their link....
http://poetryblogroll.blogspot.com/
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If you enjoyed Robert's music choice of Leonard Cohen on the Think Tank today, you might like to check out a piece I reposted on my other blog...

http://imaginationlane.blogspot.com/

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A Love Of Boats

Living on the coast of British Columbia means that a lot of our Sunday outings involve water. This summer, a bountiful salmon run led us several times to the pier at Steveston, where freshly-caught Sockeye were plentiful and relatively inexpensive.

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My husband and I love boats, but do not get out on them as often as we would like. We spent a lovely half-hour checking out this old sailboat advertised for sale. We pictured ourselves restoring it to glory, and running away from home to sail the world. Then we remembered that we spend more time out exploring than tending to chores, and the boat would look the same in ten years as it does now!

As well as being drawn to derelict buildings, ruined boats also pull us in. I photographed these old fish boats in Richmond's Finn Slough.

The listing Mermaid III, in the same slough, seems not to have moved for a very long time.

As a route from our outlying suburb into the centre of Vancouver, an alternate to the highway is River Road that follows the Fraser River for a considerable stretch. It is home to sawmills, log booms and wooden docks, some of which have been ravaged by time and reduced to skeletons of their former selves.

And of course there are boats, most still plying their trade up and down the river, and others like this beauty, abandoned and left vulnerable to the ravages of time.
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I caught only a glimpse of her through the trees as we drove past. A quick turnaround and we clambered down to the muddy shore to snatch a few photos. It is small detours like this that make it almost impossible for my husband and I to go directly from A to B.

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On another day, and another stretch of the Fraser River, we came across this wonderfully rusted barge. His size and upright stance imbue him with a sense of majesty as he seems to point upward to the Skybridge and the Patullo Bridge in the background that take people across the river from Surrey to New Westminster.

It is true that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and these boats are indeed beautiful to me...

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I'm linking this post to Watery Wednesday! For more photos that are damp, doused and drenched check out the link below!

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http://waterywednesday.blogspot.com/

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