Geology is the only discipline I know that gives one the kind of sense of time that really helps put the world and what is happening in it in the most real perspective. I often say I like to look at what is going on as though I was standing on Mars. It makes so many things here seem very small...which they are. The only constant in the world is change. One of my favorite lines in Desiderata advises us to accept that the universe is unfolding as it should. Studying geology has given me a greater appreciation of that line. Not that we shouldn't look out for our environment, after all it is our environment and we are adapted to live in it. If we change it too much, we might just not be able to survive in it. I have no fear that the planet is in danger, but I give us humans lesser odds. Then again, why should we be different from any other organism that has ever existed, exists today or will exist? But I digress.
My real thought behind this was something that struck me when I visited Mammoth Hot Springs again this summer. Yes, geologists have an insight into the mechanisms of the Earth but also an appreciation for how slowly, compared to our lives, they move. There are obvious exceptions...say volcanic eruptions, for example. Nonetheless, I was amazed at how much a place as "timeless" as these hot springs had changed since I was here in 2003! New pools were flourishing; others dried up. It made the whole hot spring system seem more alive to me.
Photographically speaking, this image became another small adventure that began with the thought "Man, I wish I had a wide angle lens". So, I shot several images to cover the range that "I wished I could" and stitched them together...nothing particularly new as I had used the technique in CorelDraw for producing more interesting backgrounds for exhibits, but this time it seemed fresh because there existed a different purpose. I love finding alternative solutions to doing something conventionally. I don't know why...it just pleases me.
Dear Mark,
ReplyDeleteThis photo journal is something that I look forward to every day. On my walk, the halfway point is a contemplative vista in a hemlock stand where my dog and I sit for a while in rickety Adirondack chairs listening to the birds, the wind in the trees and the other sounds of the forest - sometimes for an hour or so, sometimes twice a day, sometimes at night with the coyotes lurking about. Circumstances dictate that I carry my Blackberry for safety; once that was intrusive - now I make it a part of my stop in the hemlocks, visiting the newest photo and reading the thoughts below. For sure I look at the photos on a larger screen elsewhere for full appreciation, but what a joy to make it part of that walk! And do please digress on that geology thing we also talked about! I might venture to suggest that you don't have to post a picture every day, that it might become a burden when there are such rules laid.... or maybe some days, just the picture will tell its own story......
Thoughts from the hill,
EAS