The Poetic Eye

The Light of Winter December 23 Day 10

Today, December 23, the photograph prompt is :  The Light of Anticipation

I like to compare the holiday season with the way a child listens to a favorite story. The pleasure is in the familiar way the story begins, the anticipation of familiar turns it takes, the familiar moments of suspense, and the familiar climax and ending.  ~ Fred Rogers (Mister Rogers)

 

O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight...

 

 

I don't know about your home, but here, the excitement level is rising.  Even though today is a school day for my littles, they had trouble falling asleep last night. 

Besides Santa's arrival, gatheirngs of family and friends, feasts and merry making, many are anticipating the celebration of arrival of The Bringer of Light and the miracle of Incarnation.

Christmas in Bethlehem. The ancient dream: a cold, clear night made brilliant by a glorious star, the smell of incense, shepherds and wise men falling to their knees in adoration of the sweet baby, the incarnation of perfect love. ~ Lucinda Franks
 

The Light of Winter December 22 Day 9

Today, December 22, the photograph prompt is:  The Light of Compassion

 In these days as the light returns, consider what serves as  a Light in the Darkness... perhaps we can turn our gaze toward kindness.  While kindness may be indeed prove difficult to capture with our cameras, it captures our hearts.  Acts of kindness remain like fingerprints.  They soften us and in turn the recipient becomes more giving.  What we do, and how we act, matter to everyone we touch.  And those moments, when we step aside from the negative and give from our heart, those moments illuminate our path. 

When we come into contact with the other person, our thoughts and actions should express our mind of compassion, even if that person says and does things that are not easy to accept.  We practice in this way until we see clearly that our love is not contingent upon the other person being lovable.  

Thich Nhat Hanh

Kindness in words creates confidence.  Kindness in thinking creates profoundness.  Kindness in giving creates love.  Lao Tzu

Compassion is not religious business,

it is human business.

it is not luxury,

it is essential for our own peace and mental stability,

it is essential for human survival.

His Holiness, the 14th Dali Lama

The Light of Winter December 21 Day 8

Today, December 21, the photograph prompt is:   Sunlight and Shadow

 

Today, being Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, is the shortest day of the year and the longest night.  Beginning with tomorrow, our time in the sunlight lengthens with each passing day, until once again, in June, the process reverses. All the while sunlight and shadow draw pictures on walls and floors, on earth and sand, both marking  the passage of time and decorating our days.

Look round and round upon this bare, bleak plain, and see even here, upon a winter's day, how beautiful the shadows are!  Alas! it is the nature of their kind to be so.  The loveliest things in life, Tom, are but shadows and they come and go, and change and fade away, as rapidly as these!   ~~Charles Dickens

 

 

 

 

The Light of Winter December 20 Day 7

Today, December 20, the photograph prompt is: Your Inner Light.

 

A Spanish proverb says:

The door to the heart can only be opened from the inside.

Self light

glows through

your dark skin,

feels warm

on your skin,

as if you are

sitting by the palace hearth.

Self light

knows nothing

of dark cells,

organs, only

guessed at.

like life in distant colonies the king

has never visited.

~gabriella venditti

some recent journal pages

 
two favorite places.... (image on left courtesy of my dearest Gina)

 

 

my wild wild flower child

 

my eleven-year old. YES.  almost two weeks ago, he turned ELEVEN.

(Also, he'll be choosing my new glasses because he has impeccable

taste in eyewear. His glasses are green and so cool, I can't stand it!)
 
   

The Light of Winter December 19 Day 6

Today, December 19, the photograph prompt is:  The Heart's Light.

 

  

 

Love is not consolation.  It is light.

Friedrich Nietzche

 

The Light of Winter December 18 Day 5

It is the time of growing darkness for the Northern Hemisphere. Winter Solstice approaches.  What reflects the Light in the Darkness? In the night sky, the stars remind us that our universe is large and to think outside of ourselves. What stars exist in the firmament of your life that remind you to think beyond yourself?

Today, December 18, the photograph prompt is The Light of the Moon and the Stars.

When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.  ~~  Charles A. Beard

 

The Light of Winter December 17 Day 4

Today, December 17, the photograph prompt is: The Light of Friendship

 

If a friendship is firmly established between two hearts, they do not need to exchange news.   Sa'ib of Tabriz, Persia

 

Our friendships are our secret resource,

our reinforcements.

No enemy quite knows their strength.

No true friends will count our enemies

before throwing themselves into the fray.

The love in friendship is never weaker

for being undeclared.

Some such loves remain silent forever,

like the moon.

~~  Anna Szczuka

The Light of Winter December 16 Day 3

Today, December 16, the photograph prompt is: The Light of the Ordinary and the Everyday

 

When your life is filled with the desire to see the holiness in everyday life, something magical happens.

Ordinary life becomes extraordinary, and the very process of life begins to nourish your soul.

Rabbi Harold Kushner

 

 

class questions answered

Okay, I have gotten a number of the same questions lately, so I thought I'd do a quick little FAQ.

Can I give a class as a gift to a friend?

Yes!  Just let me know in the message area of the Paypal form that you wish to give this class as a gift.  Include that person's email, and I will send an e-card made from one of my photos.  Let me know which holiday we are celebrating, and let me know if you have a personal message you want to include and how the cad should be signed.  I can also send a real card by snail mail. 

Can I read class decriptions somewhere?

Yes! In my sidebar on the right hand side are links to descriptions.

Can I start with any Point & Shoot Journaling, or should I begin with One? 

You can start with any Point & Shoot Journaling.  You needn't begin with One.

 

Are the Point & Shoot Journaling classes all different?

Yes the content in each one is unique to that class.  I love working with photographs and have a ton of ways to do artistically in journals (and on other mixed media substrates like canvas, board, or paper)