I captured this image in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Fairy Stone State Park. I giggled at first sight of the morning’s mist in its stream along the lake at the irony of the parks name. To me, this looked as if a group of fairies were passing through and left their magic behind.
The park, one of Virginia’s first, was opened in 1936, and received its name from the mysterious “fairy stones” found in the area.
The origin of the stones are that of a Christian and Pagan mythology, believed to be that of fairies tears upon hearing of the crucification of Christ. These staurolite crystals are only found in a few places around the world. Virginia, it seems, has the abundance of them while they can also be found in Georgia, New Mexico, Brazil and Switzerland.
Geologists describe their origin as a result of a shift and change in surrounding mountains over time. The dreamer and romantic in me prefers to believe the myths of the fairies and it seems I might have captured a little proof of them. What do you think?
I captured this image while in one of the bayou’s outside of New Orleans in Louisiana. I love the look (and feel) of Spanish moss and how it seemingly rains throughout the branches of trees. A moment after I captured this image, I found myself beneath this tree, letting the moss trail across my face and couldn’t help but feel as if I was being greeted by its soul. if only we but listen….
thumbs up to the clouds waiting for the train to catch that wind
the bell tolls silently so to those who listen
to those with no fear of letting go
i cradle my bag, my makeshift courage kit
to wander now needlessly to where the leaves blow, where they seem i shall fit
always the backseat traveler i still shan’t take the helm
for it not my eyes that lead, but my heart that swells
i follow where it takes me, perhaps to dead end roads
pulling out my kit with compass to direct me as best it knows
ye of little faith, the reclusive voice no more
for those journeys once forgotten i now ready the score
days absent of sunlight, of curtains drawn
now places me on this train, piercing through dusty windows all those what ifs now gone
Iris– U2
I photographed this image along the Blue Ridge Parkway, Milepost 34. I categorized it within my abandoned photography as what you see here is the remnants of an old logging railroad. Although it is abandoned it is not forgotten and is visited quite frequently among hikers and travelers alike and offers a serene, picturesque moment to step back in time. Thank you for reading. For more of my nature and abandoned photography please visit my gallery here.
Equally as beautiful as new life peaking from the earth during the spring, I am truly captivated by the colors and the absolute imperfections of trees shedding their dreams during the fall. I say this as ever since I was a child I’ve always thought of the falling leaves this way. Never to color inside the lines, no rules to follow, to simply just be. I found the following images I captured in my backyard precisely that.
For more of my photography you can visit my gallery here
my mind resigning its weight, a bare jewel afloat,
to kelp fields, dense and fragments dark,
guiding in this underwater dance floor
traversing through your canopies wild
seasons unfold before my eyes
gardens spring blooms from a winter’s release
while the sequoias of the sea lend me their lean, serenely keen to the sun drenched skies
cerulean paves these streets of peace
as buckets of wings residing beneath the sails of tide
to antiquities void of a pirate’s lore
filling my lungs along this cathartic ride
straying further and further from the salty fits that marry my skin ashore
i fall deeper and deeper into this estuary
where a love evolves, where my heart explores
slipping into frocks left behind of mermaids best
the ballroom awaits as i untether my weathered steps
to which it replies, please, be my guest
swimming anext urchins as they needfully feed
watching otters safely sleep between the holdfast trees
i am but a visitor but a resident akin
to this underwater sanctuary that wishes me au revoir
after welcoming me with ease
This piece was inspired from watching the documentary, My Octopus Teacher featuring the kelp forests of South Africa. Filmmaker and photographer, Craig Foster begins a year long journey studying and ultimately befriending an octopus living within the kelp forest. It is beautiful and heartfelt as well as an educational piece that I would recommend giving a watch.
In writing this I imagined and truly listened to the testimony of Foster of just how magical skin diving and traversing through this underwater garden becomes to the soul. Daily stresses seem to become weightless, as trees, anchored and wise, become our guides.
The images shared within this piece are that of Foster captured during his journey within the forests in South Africa.
Kelp forests, these beautiful underwater oasis’s, are endangered, mostly so by threats from fisheries, marine pollution, invasive species and climate change. If you’d like to learn more about the ambassadors of the sea check out Sea Change Project. The group, of which Foster is a member of, is striving to educate and protect the ecosystem that is a sanctuary and home to many marine animals and wildlife.
