• coffee life,  latte art,  quotes

    The mystic knows…

    Lets me know I’m loved

    The mystic knows that what really matters is the inner connection of the heart in which our heart opens and cries. It is something so simple and yet so easily overlooked. Prayer is a way to be with God.

    Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee

    It was 37 degrees and 82% humidity when I rode to coffee life this morning. Needless to say it was also cold coming home but so invigorating. My barista, Winter, made me a lovely heart this morning on my Old Town Mocha, and lets me know I’m loved.

  • People/Portraits,  quotes,  street photography

    Taking Care of the Soul

    Crystal City, Virginia – 2006

    Care for the soul needs to include care for the sacred, for without it we will become lost without even knowing that we are lost. And care for the Earth needs to combine these two, so that the real music of creation can be heard amidst all the noise of today.

    Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Seasons of the Sacred
  • landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  shadows,  silence,  winter scenes

    Winter’s Shadows

    Winter’s shadows and fresh snow

    This is a time (winter) when action becomes non-action, sound becomes silence. We see the essence in things, within ourself and within the world. It can be a time when we consider what is essential in our own life, and what needs to fall away, or we left behind. The ability to let go is a wisdom that belongs to Winter.

    Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee

    It was a frigid morning here in Colorado. My weather app said -7 degrees at 4:26 am. We received 3-4 inches of snow the past 24 hours and may get another inch later this evening. I took this image at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area about 9:45 am when we had warmed up to 2 degrees and the sun popped out. This arctic blast is a reminder that we are in the midst of winter and its gifts of silence, non-action, and repose. Winter is time for nature to slow down and rest before the onrush of rebirth and new birth of spring. And, how relevant that is in our lives, society and the world. Stay warm wherever you are!!

  • clouds,  landscape,  quotes

    And, I call it prayer…

    Clouds at Riverbend Ponds Natural Area

    “There comes a time on our mystical journey when prayer embraces all of life. We are always inwardly in a state of prayer….How can one not live a life of prayer when we have so much need, when so much is given?”

    Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Prayer of the Heart

    I know that some viewers of this blog will be tired of all my landscape images that include clouds. I’ve actually been told that. I also know some won’t. But I never get tired of being there, experiencing all of it, taking a few images when I can to share, because we truly are given so much. And, I call it prayer…

  • clouds,  landscape,  quotes,  shadows

    May we not forget…

    Spiritually ecology is a recognition that at the root of our present ecological crisis is a spiritual crisis, and that the essence of the spiritual crisis is a forgetfulness of the sacred nature of creation.

    Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Seasons of the Sacred

    I am enjoying a nice cool morning here in Colorado. I’m leaving in a short while to meet my classmates for our monthly luncheon picnic. I took this photo last month on my way back from Red Feather Lakes area. I loved how the pre-sunset light presented parallel lines across the landscape. It was another one of those spiritual moments to enjoy.

  • landscape,  mountains,  nature,  quotes

    Learning to Listen

    Learning to pray is learning to listen. Within the heart we learn to wait with patience for God’s words, which may come even when we have not asked. Listening itself is a form of prayer, in which our whole being is receptive.

    Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee

    I always thought that it would nice to live near a river and fall asleep each night listening to the song of the river. But that’s not the reality in my life. However, when given the opportunity I am learning to listen to the rivers and streams. If that’s prayer then so be it. This is an image of the Big Thompson River in Moraine Park in Rocky Mountain National Park taken back in May. Happy Monday!!

  • Plants,  quotes,  trees

    The sacred in nature

    We all have within us a sense of the sacred, a sense of reverence, however we may articulate it. It is a part of our human nature…it is a fundamental recognition of the wonder, beauty, and divine nature of the world.

    LLewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Season of the Sacred

    As I walked across campus the other morning I noticed these tree branches with their new leaves popping to greet the blue sky. I stopped, said thank you then took a couple of images. I wonder if I stopped because I heard a whisper from the trees, “Pssst, look at me.” I’m not sure how long ago I began seeing the sacred in nature but I do believe it is a part of our human nature.