Author: evetureknaturephotography@gmail.com

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Precision

I dreamed I was looking at an album of my photos and they were dull, greyed. No pop. Not bold. Hazy. Lots of photos, and all the photos were that way. Dim, faded, like a protective film that renders out of focus was over each one. Lord, I want to walk with You a little. I know every time I reach out my hand, stretch my thoughts in Your direction, You are there. Always, always, right there.

Have I not promised to be your light? I Am still the Light of the world and the Light still shines in–into–the darkness. bring Me your dark places, your dim places, your dullness. Don’t confuse beveled with dull. Beveled softens edges for beauty and for use. Some things are meant to beveled; others are meant to be sharp. A butter knife doesn’t need the edge a carving knife needs. You need a sharp edge to prune, to edit. Ice skaters need a sharp edge to inscribe their line. Precise–this is what sharpness should mean for you. Not wounding, precision.

You can be precise, definite, bold, passionate in your gentleness. You can be fiercely firm, unwavering, in your commitment to peace. Not wishy-washy. Not dull. Not a dim resolve. Like Annie Dillard’s title, Holy the Firm. Let firm be holy for you. Let Me show you how to take a stand, how to make a mark–your mark. You are inscribing touchstones now, a mark here, a mark there, hoping someone will find one. The larger work, your larger life, is like inscribing on tablets, putting yourself out there. That is the source of your block, that fear. So you dim it, dull it, hide it. Don’t dim your light. Don’t dim My light in you. You think this means prophecy. It does. Let that sink in. It does. You think that means railing at the world, pointing out its wrongs, focusing on evil, routing out sin. You can stand against–many do. I Am asking you to stand FOR. Be passionate about what you intend. Focus always on that. Remember My old word, be ruthless for righteousness? You do that by intention, by intending good and blessing–not by fighting against evil, and putting your focus there. Put your focus on what you intend, for yourself, for others, for the planet. Visualize peace. That is your vision quest. Let Me show you a new path and a new way and a new day.

 

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The Gift of Silence

Sometimes, like right now, I can’t think of anything in particular to say, or ask. So what would You say? What would You say about that?

You come here to the Page to listen. It is okay to come to Me and just breathe. How often do you really do that? We don’t always have to speak to be heard. Remember, I know your thoughts, even before you do. I know your heart, I know your mind, I know your body’s strengths and weaknesses and challenges. I see your successes before they happen and I see your stumbling in time to catch you before you fall. You don’t need words to get My attention. I Am riveted by you, My attention is fixed on you — on all of you — every single second of every single day. You can scarcely fathom such Love or such attention. So don’t try to be what you are not. Don’t strive to be profound when what you really want and need is some rest. Just keep being real and honest with yourself, and that will keep you intentionally real and honest with Me also.

 

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Stained Glass

Every night, before dinner, taking turns, one or the other of us thanks You for the day, and for our food, and for all the good things You give us. On days like today–our anniversary–those thanks mean a little more, refer to something extra-ordinary, something that makes the ordinary extra special. Thank You for bringing Pete and me together all those years ago. You took what was broken inside each of us, God, and You made something precious. Like stained glass, You saw that the pieces could come together and become something beautiful. I am, we are, so grateful.

I was not the only One Who had vision. The two of you did, too — vision that led you to hope again, to believe again, to care again, and to love again. That is exactly the sort of vision the world needs right now, vision to see beyond, and imagine as the two of you did, the possibility of something beautiful, something wonderful, once again — even if that something wasn’t the thing you originally planned. That is what hope is all about, the vision to see beyond.

Lord, when light refracts through stained glass, it makes a rainbow. It’s prismatic. 

Yes, that is what Love does, it colors your world with possibility and wonder.

Thanks again, God, for making our world, our daily part in it, so full, so beautiful. Thank You. 

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Making Waves

One of my favorite quotes of Louise Hay is, you can start your day over at any time. God, I sort of feel like that about my week, like I need a do-over. Things are actually going quite well, but I think my attitude has needed a readjustment, and I’m sorry. I think I have, actually, I know I have been letting the stress get the best of me, meaning overtake my best self. I don’t know who else has noticed, but I have noticed. And obviously You have noticed.

I have a shorthand word for do-over also, and it is Grace.

I say that sometimes, God. I said it inside a lot this week, when I was panicked, about the wiring, about the computer hookup, about staging, about placement of fixtures: I move through my day with ease and grace.

So think about what you are really saying. If you are moving through with grace, with My Grace, then what that really means is you are moving forward in My Power. My Power is not only power to do, it is primarily power to be. In your case right now, that means power to be your best self, as you do all that needs doing.

Lord, I’ve gone months, months, without picking my fingers. Right through the ER visit with what turned out to be a mini stroke with Pete. What in the world set me off this week? I really need to know. It’s a stress response I no longer want to have in my psyche. Yet for some reason, it surfaced this week. Why?

This week you were confronted with many expectations and suggestions, so many coming at you at once that you literally could not hear yourself think. And you were so bombarded with having to react in the moment, moment after moment, that you could not figure out how to make time to hear Me either. Isn’t that true?

Lord, it is true. I just want to do everything right, everything correctly. And somehow please all these different people, some of whom want, or seem to want, very different things. I get lost in all of it.

Yes, you do get lost — you lose your focus, you lose your center and that is when you lose your way. In those moments although you may seem outwardly to be in control, you are actually free-falling into a very old fear, so old you can barely remember its origins. At the bottom of that fear is the prohibition against speaking up, speaking out, verbalizing your own thought or feeling or opinion, or asking for what you truly need or want. Your personal primal stress responses are all born out of silence. But as I have told you before, I don’t want you silent. I don’t want you shouting, either. As always there is a third way. You can find safe and sacred spaces to speak. Not to be silent, not to shout, but to speak. To speak up. Up from the well that is inside you, that is full, by the way, of creative, innovative, inspired ideas. On the one hand, you think it is dry, when it is actually full to nearly overflowing. And on the other hand, you are afraid if you pry the lid off this long-capped well, what will emerge will be anger or rage, something that would hurt someone else. You have been long schooled to think your words and thoughts have little value. They are precious to Me. Hear Me: your words, your thoughts, your feelings are Precious in My sight! Not anathema. Not cursed. Not rejected. Precious. Try that thought on for size!

Lord, that thought is huge. It is like a very large coat, several sizes too big.

Not too big. Not too big for your mind and not too big for your heart. But let’s talk a moment about your stress.

Ummm. Do we have to?

No, of course we do not “have to.” But you are the one who brought it up in the first place. Don’t you want to?

I guess. Maybe. Yes. Okay. Yes.

Do you know what stress is like? It is like picking up something too heavy for you to lift and carry, and then staggering under its weight, trying to prove you are strong. I Am not asking you to prove you are strong. I Am not asking you to prove anything. I know you and I love you. All I Am asking you is to walk with Me. Walk with Me and be honest. Tell Me what you cannot lift and carry. It may just be that you are trying to tote a burden that is not yours in the first place.

Not mine?

No. Not if what you are trying to carry is to meet others’ expectations that are either irrelevant, or impossible to truly satisfy, or counter to your true values. One of your core values is abundance. Another is the importance of connecting, if only for a brief few minutes. Another is that everyone ought to have a chance to shine. Another is that you recharge by drinking in air and light, clouds and water, wide, broad land and high tall land, and eye contact with all critters. The world did not always understand Me. It will not always understand you. You can seek to be understood or you can accept that you will sometimes–and sometimes more than other times–be misunderstood, and that is actually okay, because you are walking a different pace on a different trail than those who misunderstand. No judgment against them, and no judgment against you. But you have to decide in those moments whether it is worth it to you to just keep walking. It is when you turn aside, stop walking, and try to match either their path or their pace that you stumble into stress.

But Lord…shouldn’t I care what people think? 

If you can continue to love them, and show love to them, even if they misunderstand you, then your love is really what is most important–not their understanding.

So You think that is why I felt so stressed the past few days? I was trying to be understood?

You were longing to be understood, and considering the many thoughts and opinions all around you, you were literally trying to morph yourself into being a chameleon in order to blend in, not make waves. But let Me ask you something about making waves.

What did you photograph this week?

Oh, ha, Lord! Waves!

What kind of waves?

Oh, my gosh–big waves, huge waves, sunlit waves, magnificent curls and splashes, wave spray backwards and shooting up in ethereal angelic forms and rainbow colors, multiple wave sets breaking all at once. Fabulous huge waves!

What would you rather photograph, if there was no danger, no destruction, associated with your images? A flat lake-like ocean, or the ocean you saw yesterday?

The ocean I saw yesterday, Lord. I felt so alive out there. It was cold and windy and until I came in and realized my lips and face were chapped, I hardly noticed in the moment!

So I would ask you to carefully consider your answer in terms of your own life, your own influence. If you had a choice–and you do have a choice–do you want to be a placid lake or a wild ocean?

Gosh, God, that doesn’t seem fair, asking me that question. You know how much I love peace. How much I don’t want discord.

Who said anything about discord? I am asking about energy and influence. Which would you rather be?

Hmmm. Can I be both peaceful and inspiring? Because that ocean yesterday was inspiring, God. It was. It made me think of possibilities. It woke me up somehow.

That ocean uncapped your well. And what came spilling out? Rage? Anger? All that you feared? Anxiety? Panic? Stress?

No, God, none of that. Exhilaration and gratitude and gladness and exuberance. Joy. Joy is what came out, I guess. 

So let Me ask you one more time: How do you feel about “making waves” now?

Nervous. But I hear You. I do. Can You help me?

Of course. To paraphrase what Aslan said to Lucy, I shall be helping you all the time.

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The Long Run

Lord, an old friend asked me today, how long have I been doing this, meaning, photographing. And really, the answer dates back to high school. But there is a subset of answer, too. How long have I been photographing in line with my own voice, and that is a much shorter time. I remember in the beginning of my era with switching to digital, wondering how others managed to make the images they did. And in that day, I probably would have even said “capture the images” but I don’t say that any more. I try not to even say “take.” I would rather say “make” or “receive.” I was looking back at a journal from that timeframe, and I am astounded at what You said way back then, so I want to write it down again here. As a reminder–so that when I get discouraged, which I do on occasion, I will have this to come back to. So here is what You said–

You’re not on a day hike. You are not capturing the surface, the obvious, taking glimpses and glances. This is like a marathon journey, like hiking the A.T., like moving into a landscape to discover its nuances, its depth, its rhythms and seasons. Go with what draws you. It is okay to notice where others pause, stop, camp. Some of the same spots may draw you, too. But there will be many other spots where you are drawn to linger and they rush on, unseeing. Find your own touchstones. Photograph, draw, paint and write what speaks to you at the time. You have no idea how much joy some of those pictures, that you saw first in your heart, will bring others. That is why you were there. That was the touchstone.

So here it is, more than 10 years later. 

And here you are. What have you learned?

Well, one thing I am learning, is how consistent Your Voice is. I look back, I look within, You seem to be saying the same things. Another thing is, how I seem to need that reassurance, which I guess is why You keep saying the same things! 

This is part of what it means to run a marathon. You need stamina. You need water. You need to know that I Am in this with you for the long haul. Why do runners run?

Well, I know one thing. Not many run to win. Seriously. I know some marathoners, incredible people. They run to run. They run to finish. They run because they can.

So why do you photograph?

Because I love it. I love the way I feel, outside. I love everything about it. I sense You there. And I love to share the stories, later. I do. 

Your stories, as you call them, have such an impact because they are slices of real life, your life. So I would reassure you, you have many miles to go before you sleep. So sleep well, little one. You are doing well.

 

 

 

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Encouraging Words

Lord, recently I encouraged someone about college, and someone else about painting, and still someone else about a sister Nags Head gallery…Barnabas. I am still being Barnabas. I love that. It’s such a part of who I am.

It’s such a part of who I made you to be. Every time you give in to that impulse, you are yielding to Me. Every time you yield to Me, you allow the River to flow to someone else. It’s as if you are always doing a Rain Dance, always dancing the Sun Dance, seeing all those who come in your door as part of your larger tribe. And so they are. Your gift is this seeing and knowing, and your willingness to connect, to dance, even when you are tired. Even when concerns of various kinds come seeking your attention. By keeping your intention pure, you can–and do–do much good. You set your intention. I will supply the power, and the impetus, and the opportunity.

Lord, my intent is to bless.

Then Blessing you will be. You are the Blessing Way, personified, shown through the lens of a life, what you like to call an ordinary life. That unexpected Heron with its wings aglow in the setting sun–that’s you. That catch-your-breath beauty and centeredness, that sparks gratitude and joy and hope in others–that’s you. The Blessing Way is who you are, not just where you are going.

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Blessings

Another gray day, and cooler. I do feel sorry for the folks who are here this week. More northeast winds and drizzle turning to real rain coming. But I saw my first osprey in Duck for the season, hovering over our cove. And I heard birdsong when I got back home, an hour or so before dusk thanks to Spring Forward time. So what would You say to me tonight?

Quit apologizing for My blessing. Quit being embarrassed over My largesse. You are so grateful for small, for little, for glimpses. Be grateful for large, for big, for vistas. You hold back telling of your blessings out of fear of others’ judgment. You think they’ll think you are ostentatious, that you are boasting, that you are snobbish. No one who comes to know you will ever think that. Anyone who believes that doesn’t know you. You’ve been faithful over little. Just rejoice and receive the “much” that is the fulfilling of My promise. Much opportunity, much blessing. It is okay to be astonished, but not to feel embarrassed, as though you do not deserve My blessings. You are getting a glimpse of this truth: everyone does. So model this.

 

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How does Your Garden grow?

Lord, I keep coming back to the third letter of John, in which he pray that his readers would be in good health and prosper, even as their souls prosper. I find so much depth in that thought! Our soul prospers when we are fully connected. Like a garden prospers in the right soil and in the right mix of light and water for whatever the particular plants require to thrive. So that brings up a question–since this is not a cookie-cutter planet, and we aren’t cookie-cutter people, and You aren’t a cookie-cutter God, You relate to us differently, don’t You? I’m hearing Ding-Ding-Ding in my head.

Yes! You understand! This could be the real gift of denominations, and “religious practices” — acknowledging that some humans are shade-loving while others need full sun and still others need a mixture. Some humans, like sea oats, thrive in what other humans would label drought, because those other humans require a lot of water. I Am certainly Big Enough to encompass within Myself every human need. It is only natural that like would gather with like. You don’t berate a hosta plant for wilting atop a sand dune! You plant it in the shady conditions that are most suitable for it to thrive.

But what do you humans do? You gather to yourselves others like you and then you make dogma. You decide that yours is the best–or only valid–location in the Garden. You discount others’ experiences as less-than, or flat-out wrong. Meanwhile, those others are harboring the same thoughts and judgements about your group! And all of you think you are the only ones growing to suit the Master Gardener!

So what are we to do, then?

Make room in your heart for all kinds of plants. Let Me be God over the whole Garden. Learn from one another and respect one another enough to allow those different from you to find their way, their perfect spot. Most of all, love one another. Love one another as I have loved each of you, all of you. Love seeks the other’s best. Love rejoices when the other thrives. Love sees the whole garden and each plant in it as beautiful and essential.

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Perspectives

Lord, I think I need to talk about perspective. Somebody could come along tonight and ask, how was your day? And depending on my perspective, on what particular aspect or moment I want to focus on, I would answer in any number of ways! I might say, great! I might say, exhausting. I might say, tense. I might say, overwhelming. I might say, truly wonderful. And all of those things would be true! 

You remember the proverb, as someone thinks, so someone is? So what is your dominant emotion right now?

Joy. Gratitude.

And why is that?

Well…we had some difficulties today with the move, no doubt. But they all resolved in the end–or are close enough to being resolved that I don’t have to fret over them. Pete is no longer frustrated or anxious and that helps me, too, it does. And overarching any difficulties was my gratitude for all the help, the moving guys, Phyllis’ trojan efforts over the past days to get us ready, and her vision and Pete’s vision for the new space as well. Then there was the synchronistic serendipity of the two gals who “just happened” to wander in, and right at the time we could talk and connect. Honestly, that was huge. Encouraging that fledgling artist, I say fledgling only because that is what she might, if she were being generous, name herself, when actually she is full stature and doesn’t see it yet, but encouraging her was a highlight of my week so far. I had a brief conversation with a grandson and his voice always brings me joy. I connected with several friends over the past couple days. It has been good.

So your perspective acknowledges all the realities of your day. You aren’t ignoring the difficult parts or pretending they did not happen. You lived through them and felt the weight of them in real time. The difference is, you did not allow them to overtake your overall perspective, of life being basically good, and of seeking–and therefore finding–places to connect and ways to bless. Your perspective shapes your reality. It does.

 I have had this happen, actually, in a photograph, where the perspective was skewed because of my lens choice. And what my lens saw and the reality my eyes saw were very different.

If you can keep holding on to your chosen perspective, to live a life centered in Love, in Gratitude, in Peace, that does not mean you will not encounter any difficulties. It does mean you have tools to navigate through them, and beyond. It also means at the end of the day, like right now, when you look back on your day, you do so from this position your perspective offers.

When you look back on your week, this time tomorrow, and when you look back on your year, at the end of the season, and when you look back on this chapter, and when you eventually look back on your life, you will see clearly the valleys you walked through, but you will also see how they did not predominate your life’s landscape. Instead you will see the shining reality your perspective created for you and those around you, over and over, just as today–a reality of beauty and hope, of centering and encouragement, of joy and peace and love. Remember, if you want to change something in your outward reality, have a good close look at your perspective.

Ok, God. I hear You. And God…thank You.

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Seek Fullness for Balance

Now, God, I have minutes. What would You Who are Timeless, what would You speak into my minutes?

Why do you think I Am a Trinity?

Uh, I have no idea.

I modeled humans after Myself.

But Lord, we are limited. I mean, we have bodies.

Yes, so there is the Second Person of the Triune I Am. Jesus.

Okay, so here is a question. Jesus entered time, so to speak, limiting Himself in a physical sense to our limits. But if He always was, this is hard to convey in words, if He always existed before His birth, He was, what? Not separate from You as Father–but different? Same Essence, same values…like twins? I get confused. We people, we get confused!

Think about a 3-legged stool. I Am Balance within Myself. You need balance within yourself. You need to tend to your needs in three areas:

Your body–your health. That means what you eat and drink. That also means exercise and movement, it means how you treat yourself. Even your outward appearance to others, clothing, all of that, comes under the heading of your body.

Your mind and emotions–what you learn, how you learn, what and how you think, the thoughts and feelings you generate either proactively, like affirmation or gratitude, or in reaction to others or to circumstances.

Your spirit–this is where your core values are, and is the seat of your creativity too. This is the well, the deep spring, that feeds and waters your mind and emotions, which in turn prompt action–your body’s responses. You need all three, and you need balance among them.

Lord, whole studies have been done on the Trinity. I read one time that a way to think about it is the roles even we people play. How one man can be, at the same time, a grown son, a father himself, and a husband. Who he is, who he appears to be is different depending on the relationship. Factor in other relationships like employee or boss or co-worker, or friend or coach or…whatever…every person will have a different perception of that man, depending on the relationship they share. 

Yes, this is perceptive. Yet it is only part of the truth. The relationships each has with that man are also lived in different arenas, so to speak. The relationships at work might be based more on sharing information and thoughts, perhaps (depending on the job) even sharing creativity. The relationships at home, if they are healthy and complete, will include all aspects.  There might be friendships, like a sports league, that are based more on sharing a physical connection, like bowling or golf.

So what does this have to do with anything?

Humans tend to compartmentalize their relationships, including their relationships to themselves, and their relationships with Me. Some approach Me only mentally. Emotions are kept under wraps unless they are sanitized to be what people think I will accept–like the Ted Talk you heard tonight on emotional rigidity versus emotional agility. Some approach Me only when they have a great need that affects their body, like an issue with their health or finances, some crisis. Some have their entire relationship built only on their negative feelings, coming to Me only when they feel empty or sad or alone, but essentially ignoring Me or My Presence when they feel no real need, when life is going well. How long do you think a marriage would last, if one partner approached the other only under restricted, regulated conditions? Yes, I call Myself Father — but your scripture also names Me the Bridegroom. And a truth of the Incarnation is this–when you allow the Holy Spirit to join with your spirit, what can be birthed in and through your life, creatively and emotionally and then physically, can literally change the world. Not just your world, the world at large. This is how great ideas and innovations come into being. Sparks of ideas take fire in the imagination and are forged into reality through concentrated action.

So when I say I Am, I intend to be all of these to you. To humanity.

I Am Father. Think of what that means to a young child, assuming the Father is faithful to his role. That child will grow up to feel safe in the home, will be taught responsibility, will be encouraged to grow and explore, will have a source of wisdom to look up to and draw from. In short, that child will be well-nutured to become his or her very best self.

I Am One of you. Think of a spouse, think of a partner, think of a best friend, think of a twin. Think of a sibling that goes through life alongside you, that mirrors back to you through the lens of shared experience truths about yourself you might otherwise not recognize. Think of what you have felt empowered to do, when you know you have been deeply loved and supported, having someone right beside you who believes in you and your best.

I Am Spirit flowing through you. Like your breath, I animate and fill your very being, whether you know Me, name Me, recognize Me, partner with Me, or not. But the choice to participate in My flow in your life opens you to greater and greater creative expression, in all ways. Do you want to accomplish great things, have ideas that will help and bless and encourage others? Embrace the I Am Who is Spirit, Who is Holy. Holy means My impulses are pure, of highest motive and intention. My Holy Spirit will help you gauge any time or any area where your own ideas or ideals are falling short–not to scold you, not to punish you, but to encourage you to aim higher, to achieve greatness. Anyone can be great in Love. Anyone can be a champion in Compassion and Peace. Anyone can be judged Joyous and Grateful. Anyone can be awarded for Truth.

So I can have all these relationships with You?

You can and you must, if you wish to be all you can be here on this earth. This is more than a matter of balance, even. This is about fullness. Go back to that three-legged stool. What happens if one leg is radically shorter than the others?

Oh, I have had that happen with my tripod! It is disastrous! If I don’t catch it, fix it, the whole thing crashes to the ground.

Well, your life, your collective human lives, are in danger of crashing to the ground without the full length of each leg of the stool. You want balance? Seek fullness. Don’t go halfway in your relationship with Me. Share it all. Be all in.