Wholeness

Cosmos above me.

Earth below grounding my feet.

Blending in my heart.

~~~~~~

The Haiku

‘Going Vertical’ helps me center, re-orient, and thus, redirect my energy. It helps me reclaim my Self in the midst of both my own and the world’s ‘horizontal’ chaos, disruption, and suffering. I first learned the power of this shift in my consciousness during the time between 9/11 and when the US declared war on Iraq. As a practice, it most definitely supports me, first, by lifting my vibration, increasing my Light, and quieting my monkey-mind. Secondly, it also reminds me of what is and what is not mine to do in the world. Sometimes, these days, I need both that support and that reminder several times in a single day!

The Photo

This beautiful orchid was blooming in front of our kitchen window. One cloudy morning I awoke to new-fallen snow. It was so new and pristine that there were no tracks on the driveway beyond the window. Not even from the bunnies. The white of the snow and the white of the orchid together were breathtaking. I saw the photo in my mind’s eye. Initially, however, I couldn’t get the angle right so that I could capture only the orchid and the snow. Instead, I had the orchid, the snow, the window frame, and a neighbor’s house. Then a thought occurred to me: “Why not stand on something to see if that would make a difference? It’s worth a try, right?”  Thus, a simple, small plastic stool that Michael stood on to brush his teeth when he was small made this photo possible.

The Combination

The haiku and the photo together form one of 24 Urban Nature Fine Art Prints, one for each of the 24 Kaleidoscope Lenses. All of the photos were taken within five to ten minutes of downtown Minneapolis. They are reminders that staying connected with Nature is possible almost anywhere…even in urban areas.

Photo: In our kitchen.