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
| |
|
Today, December 19, the photograph prompt is: The Heart's Light.
Love is not consolation. It is light.
Friedrich Nietzche
| |
|
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
| |
|
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
| |
|
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
| |
|
Today, December 15, the photograph prompt is: The Miracle of Light
Albert Einstein, who is often regarded as the father of modern physics,whose research included such thing as the speed of light and the photon- a particle of light, had this to say regarding miracles:
"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."
I heard an anectdote about Einstein. A mother went up to speak to him to ask about how to provide the right books for her son to read so she could support his develpment into a brilliant scientist. The books Einstein recommended? Fairy Tales.
| |
|
I have been thinking a lot about light lately. Here in Pennsylvania, darkness comes around 5pm, and the days are often soft grey. The holidays bring a light to my life. And as I sit here, perched at the antique typesetter's desk where my computer rests, the fireplace is burning, the Christmas tree is lit, and warm lights make home cozy. I love the holidays.
My parents, even though I grew up with very little, made Christmas absolutely magical. Beyond our Christmas lists to Santa, which they made happen by scraping and scrimping , the magic came with stories and making decorations- afternoons spent coloring Christmas pictures which we cut out and hung up on windows and cupboards, talking, traditions, my mom's attention to detail, holiday baking and holiday planning. The whole month was made of magic. That magic was a gift in itself- that experience of magic, and one I want to be sure to impart to my children.
I believe in Santa. I always have. And when I was nine and discovered the truth, the magic wasn't lost. My mom explained thoughtfully, carefully, that I had become part of Santa. As the oldest, I was now part of the making magic for my brother and my sisters. I became part of the storytellers, and the voice of affirmation to keep the innocence of believing alive. I saved pennies and nickels and bought candy for my siblings' stockings- walking to the store to choose Christmas themed things each time I had collected enough. I returned soda pop bottles for change, and did little chores. I was excited to make Christmas. In doing so, my mom kept a part of my innocence intact. I still have that. The magic lives on in my heart.
I grew up Catholic, complete with Catholic school, and Christmas pageants and Midnight Mass. The Nativity and the miracle were part of my school day. We learned about the Bringer of Light into the Darkness and what that meant to the world. We learned about Hanukkah and the miracle of light as the God of the Old Testament made the oil burn for eight miraculous days instead of one.
As an adult, I find I consider growing up Irish Catholic being a child of a particular culture. My spirituality has changed since those years when I stood in a grey and maroon plaid jumper in the close warmth of a filled pew of children and heard the words of the Gopsel of Luke: In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered...All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Much later in my life, I experienced God, or my higher power, personally. I heard my name called in my heart. It changed me forever. I grew from that to believe that the Divine rests within me. I believe that it rests within each of us, and while we may recognize that Divine voice by different names, it is Divine and inside each human, giving us infinite value. That Divinity, that Light rests in all of us.
While it may be summer for some of you, it is the holiday season. For me the holidays teem with Light. The decorations, the warm incandescent glow of lamps in the house, my fireplace are obvious ways the light is manifest. Less obvious ways may be the reflection of Light on the faces of children, the glow of a candle flame in the glass of window, on the feeling of touching others in just a tiny way as I drop coins into a Salvation Army kettle or pin mittens to the Giving Tree. Just small acts, no righteousness about them, that we do to help others that seem to multiply at this time of year and add to the Light that grows.
You know, the Yule log was burned on the hearth at Winter Solstice to carry us forward from the darkest night of the year into the growing light. That log, never purchased, but gifted or grown, warmed the home and the spirit. I think the lights of the holidays do that for us. The lighted candles of the Advent wreath, used in the Catholic tradition, glow with anticipation, as each week a new candle flame joins the others until the Light arrives in the form of one small baby boy. Menorahs are lit to remind us of a miracle of light and faith. The porch light goes on, as we wait for family and guest to arrive. Luminarias line porches and sidewalks and streets to light a path.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
For the next nineteen days, December 14 to January 1, please join me as I put up one photograph prompt each day - meaning an idea for you to make a photograph around. We take many photos during the holidays, and those photos form a wonderful treasure trove of memory and light. Let's add to that light with intention. These are a small and simple gift to you and to the light within you.
Photographs themselves are a record of light, and so, are a fitting way to record the Light, however it surrounds or fills you at this time of the year. Each day, I will post a prompt- a concept- an idea for you to keep in your mind. Tuck your camera in your pocket or your bag. Take it on an evening walk and to gatherings and out shopping. Look through your archived images- all those jpegs you have stored and photos you have tucked away (use your scanner) for images that fit the prompt.
Use the prompt as a jumping off place to journal, and add your photo to your journal page. Post on your blog if you want. Please feel free to link to this post and share this idea with others. Here's the link:
http://gryphonsfeather.typepad.com/the_poetic_eye/2009/12/-the-light-of-winter.html
Below is the first prompt:
Today, December 14, the prompt is the Light of memory, the light of remembrance.
| |
|
Altered Books, Collaborative Journals, and Other Adventures in Bookmaking
Artists' Cafe (Best of Somerset Studio Art & Design, Volume 4)
Photo Crafts Sourcebook: Projects and Ideas for Making Photos Fun (Let's Start! Classic Songs)