Company Enough

Aunt Willie’s Wildflowers, Sullivan Co., TN

“I can enjoy society in a room;
but out of doors, nature is company enough for me.”

William Hazlitt, 1778-1830
English writer and literary critic

 

The Color Purple

 “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere
and don’t notice it….People think pleasing God is all God care about. 
But any fool living in the world can see it always trying to please us back.”

author Alice Walker, 1944-, The Color Purple
winner of 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award

 

The Finest of Clothing

“The tulip and the butterfly
Appear in gayer coats than I:
Let me be dressed fine as I will,
Flies, worms, and flowers exceed me still.”

Isaac Watts, 1674-1748
recognized as the “Father of English Hymns”

 

A Long Obedience

Linear Trail, Erwin

“There is a vast, rich reality of obedience beneath the feet of disciples…
For obedience is not a stodgy plodding in the ruts of religion,
it is a hopeful race toward God’s promises.”

Eugene Peterson, 1932-
“A Long Obedience in the Same Direction:
Discipleship in an Instant Society”

 

The Pace of Nature

Bass Lake, Biltmore Estates

“Adopt the pace of nature:  her secret is patience.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882

 

A Reality Far Beyond Itself

“The whole of nature is a sacrament
pointing to a reality far beyond itself.”

Henri Nouwen, 1923-1996
Creative Ministry (Seeds of Hope)
Dutch Catholic priest and author

 

For the Eyes of Faith

Flower in Conservatory at Biltmore Estates, NC

“…For the eyes of faith, every created thing
manifests the grace and providence of Abba.”

Brennan Manning, Ragamuffin Gospel
author, priest, speaker

 

The Best Remedy

Blue Hole – Upper Falls, Carter County, TN

 “The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside,
somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God.
Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be…”

Anne Frank, 1929-1945
Jewish girl who wrote a diary while in hiding with her family
during the German occupation of the Netherlands during WWII

 

I’m back

Sorry about the long hiatus, friends. I’ve just finished three years of graduate school and a very heavy year of writing a dissertation. Happy to say I finished my doctorate in higher ed administration in May and am slowly recovering and regaining my life back. Hope to be posting more regularly and hopefully out soon replenishing my photos and my soul with the beauty of God’s creation. Thanks for hanging with me. Enjoy!

Roses or Diamonds?

“I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.”

Emma Goldman, 1869-1940
aka ‘Red Emma,’ a Lithuanian-born anarchist
known for her writings and speeches