05 June 2017
Lens:
1. Pink Peony; 2017 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved
2. Pink Peony; 2017 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved
Click onto each image to enlarge. Let me know which you prefer. Prints are available upon request.
Pens:
I feel the weight of reaction, the weight of battle ahead. There is no way for me to express my emotional angst. The administration of my country has committed a huge injustice to humanity and the planet. For the U.S. to withdraw from our commitment to the Paris Accord is a crime against the present and the future.
All I can do is give you a sample of Mother Nature’s incredible legacy: a Spring flower of luscious delicacy in color, design and presence. The peony is a symbol of a flower’s ability to heal when our hearts and minds are wounded, when our hearts and minds are troubled, when our hearts and minds are tested.
I honor Mother Nature with her jewel that represents a transition time between spring and summer as more and more light fills our days. Each bough has a myriad of petals–fringed and irregular–that are layered in a circular design that brings a sense of chaos and calm all at once. These characteristics are emblematic of nature today, because global warming and climate change in its many dimensions and variations are prevalent and widespread.
Each of us must do our part to honor nature’s majesty and protect her future. It is baffling to me that there are still people who do not understand how the human animal is inextricably linked to the health of the planet. I’m simultaneously nonplussed and hopeful.
Tip of the Week: I wanted to offer a Tip of the Week that focuses on nature in a way that uplifts the spirit. Last year at a TED Summit the following TED Talk was given: Nature is everywhere—we just need to learn to see it (filmed June 2016 and runs 15:52) by Emma Marris. From TED Talks website are some encouraging words about her presentation: “Emma Marris is a writer focusing on environmental science, policy and culture, with an approach that she paints as being ‘more interested in finding and describing solutions than delineating problems, and more interested in joy than despair.’ I hope that you find a sense of hope in her point of view. I did.
View other entries in today’s challenge:
https://shareandconnect.wordpress.com/2017/06/05/see-the-world-differently/
https://roamingurbangypsy.com/2017/06/05/sally-ds-mobile-photography-challenge-nature-2/
https://wordandimagecollages.wordpress.com/here-in-the-south/
https://zimmerbitch.wordpress.com/2017/06/06/the-light-always-comes-back/
https://christinejrandall.com/2017/06/07/sally-ds-mobile-photography-challenge-nature-2/
Note: As always I welcome comments about this post or any part of my blog. My photographs for the mobile photography challenge are taken with an iPhone 6. If you would like to buy a print or have any questions, please view the Contact Information found on the masthead. Thank you. How to join this Mobile Photography Challenge: please click here for details and history of the challenge. If you have any questions, please contact me. Below is a reminder of the monthly schedule with themes for upcoming challenges: 1st Monday: Nature
2nd Monday: Macro
3rd Monday: Black and White
4th Monday: Challenger’s Choice – Abstraction, Animals, Architecture, Food Photography, Night Photography, Objects, Panorama, Portraiture, Photomontage, Still Life, Street Photography, and Travel.
5th Monday: Editing and Processing with Various Apps Using Themes from the Fourth Week.
Lens and Pens by Sally 
I am similarly baffled by the lack of awareness by some sectors that the planet is finite, as are we!!
Indeed…
Hard to pick a favourite from from these two Sally. I have hope too, that sanity will eventually prevail across the world.
Hope is our best ally. Thanks so much.
Beautiful Sally- I’m ever hopeful!
I like positive attitudes. Keep hope hoping.
I prefer the 2. many shades.
Lovely to hear from you. Thanks.
I love both of these images Sally; and both fit superbly with your message. I really want to believe that in the depths of political darkness, light and colour will emerge from all the good people in the world.
Su, let’s hope your optimism shines. Thanks so much for your response.
Sally, I feel about as outraged as ever. But I have already seen some signs of fighting that makes me feel a tiny bit better. I know our state is working on our own things to help improve the environment and fight climate change. You know how I feel about this insane administration. I could go on and on.
As for the peony, so beautiful and delicate and a perfect symbol of how our planet is right now.
Nicole, I’m encouraged by the number of majors and states and corporations and individuals who are resisting the administration and planning to do everything to meet the Paris Accord’s goals. It’s anxiety producing nonetheless. See you soon.
Me too Sally! 😌we must have hope and press on!
Indeed…
Reblogged this on MY OWN BEAUTY 2017 and commented:
See her page “Lens and Pens by Sally ” for more beautiful nature photography.
Thank you so much for reblogging my post. I appreciate your visit.
You’re welcome. I also liked your writing.
Thank you so much. Have a lovely week.
Takes me back to the house where I grew up and the peonies that came up every year. I can smell them almost just looking at your beautiful photos.
Yes, peonies are filled with glorious scents and nostalgia. Thanks for the comment and visit.
I like both photos. Hard to choose between.
It’s being reported over here that US cities, states and companies wish to individually sign up to the Paris Accord and ignore the direction your President is taking.
Yes, I’m more hopeful. Individuals, companies, mayors are just the beginning. He does not realize that the world is going to move on without him. He is inspiring us to act and resist his ignorance and defiance and self-serving actions. Thanks for your response. See you soon.
What glorious pink. It sings in the second photo.
Suzanne, winter (as with your photos) can be inspiring in their quiet grey and transitional forms. Thanks for your response. (There was no comment section on your blog to tell you how much I enjoyed your images and text. Winter did inspire you.)
I love the white highlights in both. The second one appears to wave like something underwater.
Happy Monday Challenge.
~C
Carol, you brought a smile across my evening. Thanks.
I agree with the others, the second image is quite uplifting and hopeful. A good feeling for this week after what Tweety put us through with the Paris Accord.
Ω
Allan, exactly, enjoy the SF weather and watch those winds.
We seem to be locked into a nightmare of one kind or another, Sally! And our planet is so beautiful and so deserving of better. But as you suggest, nature will win in the end. Find your peace in her beauty. 🙂 🙂
Jo, it’s a daily joy to meander and walk through Mother Nature and also to tend my gardens. Your walks, I am sure, do the same for you.
I love the burst of energy from the second shot, Sally. V. uplifting. But then the first shot also has a soothing, reflective quality. Also I am so struck by your words – the natural world betrayed, and therefore also humanity. I don’t need to tell you that climate change is having the worst effects on the marginal and poorest lands, and especially in the equatorial regions, and so fuelling the very kinds of mass migration of peoples that DT is trying to stop from heading to US shores. You’d think he might make a connection…
Tish,it’s hard to fathom that people can be so blinded and self-serving. The irony is that his administration will be the cause of so much more horrific acts of injustice. But he is ignorant about how we are but a small part of an enormous ecosystem that in the future will be the winner. Let’s hope that those of us (majority of Americans and the world) who see can find ways to circumvent the administration and build momentum to save the planet and humanity.
Beautiful peony image. Thank you for the message! Well said, Sally.
Amy, you’ve made my heartstrings sing. Enjoy spring and nature’s ever-evolving bounty.
Gorgeous peonies! I especially like the interplay of light and shadow in the 2nd one. I share your emotional angst, but I’m trying to channel it in a way that’s most effective. A challenge, isn’t it? Using your “lens” and “pens” is a great way, I think. But I’m struggling with how to reach others who think differently.
Patti, yes, there needs to be a dialogue, so that we can reach what is called the “radial center” where we can meet. Thank you for your thoughtful comment.
Interesting photos
Thank you for your comment and visit.