June 21, 2021 • 75

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #153: Wonderful World

It is a wholesome and necessary thing for us to turn again to the earth and in the contemplation of her beauties to know the sense of wonder and humility.

Rachel Carson

At times over the past 15 months, it’s been hard to keep the faith. The news is often overwhelming. World events, natural disasters, political and institutional crises have shaken us out of our complacency and rattled us to the core. We doubt that life is predictable, happiness is possible, and people are good.

Like many of us during the pandemic, I’ve turned again and again to nature, finding comfort in its beauty, its generosity, its predictability. So, for Amy’s Lens-Artists Challenge this week, I’d like to share several photos (some old favorites and some new ones) that give me comfort and reassurance in the power, beauty, and majesty of nature.

This first image was shot in early spring on one of our first hiking trips in Maine in 2021. On that day, I was rejoicing as I found the first signs of spring after a long winter. Here you can see the marsh grasses just turning green and the beautiful matching shades of blue in the water and sky.

Woodland and Water Symphony, Lobster Cove Preserve, Maine

This next image has been fixed in my mind for some time. I think of this rainy day in Sedona as a metaphor for our present time as we emerge from the pandemic “storm” and find unexpected moments of beauty and happiness.

Double Rainbow, Sedona, AZ

This is another image of hope and wonder which has flashed through my mind over the past 15 months. I captured this little flower growing in rocky soil years ago on a hike in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Beauty in surprising places. The Arizona desert. Shot with a Canon 40D.

This next image, taken a few weeks ago in Portsmouth, captured the astonishing feat when beautiful spring blooms burst open and turned their bright, cheerful “faces” towards the sun.

Spring Beauties, Portsmouth, NH

This last image is an old favorite. I captured this little boy on the run several years ago on a visit to Meier Gardens in Grand Rapids. He seems to be full of curiosity and energy as if he’s embarking on a great adventure. He reminds me that I should always treasure and nurture these same qualities in myself and others. Why? It’s always the adventurous people–doers, dreamers, and thinkers–who change the impossible into the possible.

On the Run, Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids, Michigan

I’ll end this post with a link to an astonishing video on the BBC of two scientists who have successfully cultivated an extinct palm tree dating from Biblical times. It’s a rare and wonderful feat of perseverance and faith in the regenerative power of nature.

We hope you join us this week for Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #153. Be sure to visit Amy’s post and see her beautiful collection inspired by the song “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong. Be sure to include a link to her post and the “Lens-Artists” tag.

Thank you for sharing your favorite images last week featuring Shade and Shadows. Your wonderful, intriguing and sometimes mysterious images took us near and far. Next week it’s Tina’s turn to host LAPC #154. Until then, have a wonderful creative week and please stay safe.

Categories: LENS-ARTISTS, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge

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75 replies »

  3. That double rainbow in Sedona is stunning, and I’m drawn to the brave little flower peeping out from that stony landscape. I love how you’ve used your images to remind us that there is always hope and nature finds a way 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

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  4. I liked your photo of the rainbows and your thoughts on how it relates to issues affecting us all. I hope the clouds will clear soon and we can breathe in fresh, clean air – without masks!

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Hi, Siobhan. Yes, I agree. Life without masks. It’s my dream, too. It will happen if we solve this problem as a global community. So far, we haven’t. Can’t we all play nicely together?? I wish we could.

      Liked by 1 person

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  7. Patti, your words and photos are beautiful. You remind us that there is hope for this world and to concentrate on the magnificence of nature.

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Hi, Anne. Wow. Thanks!! I’m trying to keep an upbeat frame of mind. Sometimes, it’s difficult. But we will prevail. I’m astounded by the brainpower that created the mRNA covid vaccines. Just amazing. I hope all’s well with you and things are looking up.

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi, Sue. I often think of that little flower. What tenacity, despite the odds! It’s a good metaphor for us, I think. Thanks for your kind words about the photos. They’re among my favorites taken over many years!! 😀

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi, Karen. The timing was amazing–about the Judean Palm. I was writing this post and a friend emailed me the video link. Great timing!! It fit perfectly with the theme, I thought. Glad you agree. I loved the hopefulness of it. I hope all’s well with you, too.

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi, Cee. They’re some of my all time favorite photos taken over many years. Glad you like them, too. I often think of that little flower and its message of persistence despite the odds!! Thanks for your kind words. 😀. I appreciate the smile they gave me.

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  13. Your photos of nature are beautiful and very comforting, Patti. They are showing its strength of survivability and beauty at the same time, like the little blue flowers.The last image is priceless, which symbolizes hope and new energy, so is the rainbow.
    Thank you so much for the BBC link, it is extraordinary story and research!

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Hi, Amy. Isn’t that video so uplifting? A friend of mine sent it to me while I was writing this post. Great timing! A special thanks for the inspiring theme, and your beautiful interpretation of it. I’m glad you liked my photos, too. They are among my favorites over many years. Enjoy the week! I’m sure you’re very busy.

      Liked by 1 person

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  14. The Sedona shot is wonderful and oh, how I wish we’d get some rain. Since we moved at the end of March last year we’ve had virtually no rain at all. In spite of that, as your other Arizona photo shows, plants somehow still take root and grow. Tenacity personified…or plantified? 🙂

    janet

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    • No rain since March? Incredible. I like that…”plantified…” Nature is certainly adapting…amazingly so. But we are putting so much stress on the environment. It’s worrying. Are people in AZ outlawing lawns and putting in rock gardens? I hear that there’s movement in CA to do that, given the huge impact lawns have on the environment.

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      • My parents live in a gated community and at some point after they moved in, grass lawns were forbidden and those with lawns pay a higher HOA fee. Most people have natural/rock “lawns” although there are fancy areas that have grass. I think that if you live in the desert, it’s irresponsible to have anything but a natural lawn except for some green spaces (and golf courses, I guess.) We’ve had some rain since March of last year, but not the 9″ we should have had and it’s now “monsoon” season and we’ve get to see a drop. It is indeed worrying. There are lots of small ways people could save a lot of water: turning off water while brushing teeth, not running water while doing dishes, taking shorter showers or while taking a shower, get wet, turn off the water, soup up and wash hair, then turn the water on and rinse off, etc. If everyone in the West and Southwest did those things alone, just think how much water would be saved.

        Liked by 2 people

    • Hi, Jo. Wonderful to hear from you–as always. Yes, spring beauties, indeed. You are in a dry season, then, with lots of heat and sun. Yes, it’s part of the grand cycle, isn’t it? We’re staying in a place further south, so the weather is warmer. It’s officially summer now that we’ve passed the solstice. Enjoy, Jo.

      Liked by 1 person

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  17. Loved your approach this week Patti – your images do indeed show how amazingly nature has survived and supported us through the dark days of the pandemic. Loved your rainbow image of course, but all are wonderful examples of the glory of Mother Nature.

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Hi, Tina. Wonderful! I’m delighted you enjoyed it. Sometimes it’s been tough to find the “rainbow” in the past 15 months, so I’ve returned to these images at various times in my mind. I know you’re in the midst of your own “storm” right now. I hope the “skies” are clearing and things are looking up.

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi, IJ. Thanks!! Yes, Sedona was an amazing place to see a rainbow. They rarely have a rainy day, but we happened to catch one. The flowers were such a delight to see this spring. I hope you’re doing OK. Thanks as always for your thoughts.

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  22. Oh my! there are some stunning photos in this post Patti. The light in the “spring beauties”. You captured just the perfect moment . And that boy running off over the hill. The exuberance of youth. All the photos are indeed reflections of a Wonderful Life.

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    • Hi, Anne. Thank you, thank you!! I’m delighted you like them. They are among my favorites and helped to inspire me during the past 15 months. I’m thrilled you enjoyed them, too.

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  23. A wonderful post Patti, full of uplifting images and hope. I am quite taken by that little flower clinging on for dear life. Seems like we have all been doing that for the past 18 months!

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Hi, Jude. I’ve often thought of that little flower over the past 15 months. Its persistence and tenacity are inspiring. Thanks so much for your thoughtful comments, as always! I hope all’s well.

      Liked by 1 person

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  25. A wonderful post in a wonderful world, Patti! Loved them all…very much. They lifted me up and made me smile. Sedona of course, but the flower is amazing. The last one of the little boy is a gem. Great take on.

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Thank you, AC! It is a wonderful world. Your kindness and support always lift me up! That little boy reminds me of my son….on the run at that age. Now I’m wondering what wonderful images you’ve posted! Take care and have a good week.

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      • Thank you, Patti! And I was thinking of my own son too. Makes it a glorious photo, doesn’t it…that people easily identify their own lives with it.

        Liked by 1 person

  27. I like how your photos had this heavier feel to the right leading us down through the post and then that child on the left in the last had a nice impact – nice take on the wonder theme and agree about the awe with the regenerative power of nature. 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Hi, Yvette. I didn’t even realize that the little boy was on the left and the rest were on the right!! Thanks for pointing that out. I guess it was subconscious!! Thanks as always for your kind words, too.

      Liked by 1 person

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      • Well we also get quite used to our own photos (like we get used to things in our house) – also / sometimes posts look different to me when I am on my phone vs a PC
        And maybe that made it more noticeable – but it was cool!
        Hope your weekend is going well

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