Lens-Artists Challenge #234 – Messages

My friend Donna at Wind Kisses is debuting this week as one of the presenters of the Lens-Artists Challenge, one whose thoughtful, lyrical words complement her lovely photos. “Messages” is the challenge she’s chosen, offering us a plethora of possibilities.

Sometimes messages are simply words, words that can be humorous as in these signs I saw recently.

In the natural world, a bright color can be a message that says: “Danger. Stay away,” the same message of the apple in “Snow White”, surface beauty hiding something deadly.

The cliffside at El Morro National Monument, New Mexico is filled with over 2,000 signatures, dates, messages, and petroglyphs carved by ancestral Puebloans, Spanish, and American travelers, allmessages from the past. I visited on a chilly fall day, almost the only person to immerse myself in the carved autographs of the past. It was magical, both historically and in the physical beauty of the park.

If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is alive. ~Eleonora Duse

The passage of dawn to dusk reminds us to make good use of our time but also to enjoy the beauty along the way. This beauty is one that animates part of my life, a part that brings joy, wonder, a deep thankfulness for God’s goodness and creation.

Messages are often personal. Do these footprints say we’re not alone, that everyone needs someone beside him/her, or something else altogether? The answer is an emphatic “YES.” 🙂

Life can get overwhelming, wearing us down to the bone. Is that the message? Nah! I don’t think so. I think the message is just relax and laugh!

Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man. ~Rabindranath Tagore

What’s the message here? Pure and simple: lovin’ my grandson!

From the road

Good morning

Another weekend in the review mirror, this one filled with Easter joy. I hope you enjoyed your weekend whether you celebrated the resurrection or not. Taking a morning walk is my favorite way to start the day or the week. The highlight of our week will be traveling to California this coming weekend to meet our new grandson and first grandchild. I also have a dentist appointment later in the week. I always like getting my teeth cleaned because they feel so good afterwards and I rarely have any other issues. Do you dread the dentist or not mind? What are you looking forward to this week?

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #193 – They Say It’s Your Birthday

John from Journeys with Johnbo is asking us to celebrate birthdays this week for the Lens-Artists Challenge and in our household, March is birthday month. Both my husband and I have March birthdays, exactly two weeks apart. But this year our birthdays aren’t the important ones because near the end of the month, a new member of the family showed up, our first grandchild and grandson. So without further ado, let me introduce Ryland, naturally the cutest baby ever. 🙂 He’s almost two weeks old.

Since Dad loves to surf and they live only a few blocks from the beach, there’s a definite theme in all their baby clothes, books, etc. We’ll have to be sure to insert some other influences such as things with a Western theme or maybe Ohio State or Nebraska just to be sure he’s not one-sided. But you see here what we’re up against (and in this case, what he’s up against.) As you can imagine, we’re looking forward to our first visit to meet him in person in a few more weeks, the delay only because of my husband’s work schedule and the need to be around to finalize tax things. ❤

Just FYI, although I have a copyright on these shots, I didn’t take them, our daughter did. However, no one is allowed to use them for any reason, thus the copyright. Thanks.