Categories
contemplations Global warming Photography

It’s a Mad Mad World~

Do you ever wake up, look around you, watch the news, survey the world and realise we are living what can be likened to an apocalyptic ‘Mad Max’ situation?

We seem to see this, live through it and carry on as if nothing strange is really happening. This baffles me about the nature of humanity.

We have had a pandemic, war, aggression, hunger, rising crime rates, shootings, destruction, rapid climate change, insane leadership, economic collapse in so many places, military take-overs, assassinations, to count only some of what one hears about every day, and still, we carry on as if all is normal.

We seem to let ourselves be hypnotised by the media, by influencers, by the next trend, by television, news of celebrities, the next meal, alcohol, drugs, sex and on and on…

Where is humanity heading towards? This maybe dark for some, but that is the issue. We turn away and abdicate the responsibility of shining a light on the darkness and we simply relegate it to a trend in history.

Isn’t this a signal to a big change that is desperately needed? Who are the thinkers and planners of the better future we are all striving towards? Who can think beyond their own mortality and plan for the good of future generations?

When will we finally wake up?

Categories
contemplations New Zealand Photography

Daily Coffee Talk~ 91/365

Keri Keri~ New Zealand 1997
At this spot I buried a strand of my hair and promised to return.

Continuing with the discovery journey of scanning my old slides and negatives…

I was once in New Zealand with a very special companion and found it to be a land of magic, beauty and power, if you have never been there, please try to get there at least once…

I was totally smitten with this black sand beach on the North Island (Keri Keri) when I was there almost 25 years ago. It has a power in the waves, the jet black sand and the wind that carries the sounds and stories of far far away with it.

I was living in New York City at the time and upon my return I never stopped talking to anyone who would listen about the magic of that beach.

The years went by, I moved to Germany, then to Shanghai and whilst there I had the chance to introduce this beach to another incredibly special human, my beautiful daughter, who was 9 years old at the time.

I am not sure I will have a chance to return for a third visit, but I hope she will. And hopefully you.

Lea ~ 2013
Categories
Photography street photography united kingdom

Daily Coffee Talk~ 90/365

I have recently started to scan my old negatives and slides from the pre-digital camera time. I remember the times when every frame counted because well, we only had a limited number of frames in the film.

I remember the excitement of seeing the images after however time it took to finish the roll, to develop it and to print it. It was magical in so many ways. I loved the anticipation and the element of surprise.

These images above are from a trip to Stonehenge and as the scans appeared I reconnected the whole magic of being there. Images link us to smells, feelings, and tastes from the time the image was taken.

Another reason why I love photography.

Categories
contemplations Germany inspiration Photography street photography war

Daily Coffee Talk~ 89/365

This cloud shall pass~ Germany

Hi again from Germany. It has taken me a while to force myself to come back to this blog since current events threw me completely off balance lately. But if there is anything I am sure of, it is that I am the boss of me and there is plenty of coffee left in the world to drink while I write my blog.

I chose this image today because it has felt lately as though a cloud is over us, casting a shadow on what we love to do and how we love to be, but all clouds dissolve and all storms will pass as they have always throughout history. We live on a planet of duality after all and there is always an up that follows a down.

I still remember spending hours trying to ‘melt’ clouds with my sister in Lebanon by firing force at them with our extended hands, and you can believe me or not, it works! Try it next time you feel like having some sunshine in your life.

The best way to get over a hurdle is to help break it down, and with the sad situation in the Ukraine and other wars, well, help, find a way to support the people who are helping by donating, creating, communicating, being compassionate and all of that somehow feels like a breeze that pushed the clouds out of the way.

Categories
contemplations Germany morning coffee talk Photography street photography war

Daily Coffee Talk~ 86/365

Have you every had the feeling that even when you are alone, you are really not?

In my mind, there is never a dull moment. Thoughts, ponders, queries, hopes, questions, memories, investigations, plans, connecting of dots, and yes, sometimes fears and worries.

I am finding it difficult to not be concerned about what is happening around me in Europe. How can anyone not be? But why are we feeling the pain of others so much more acutely? Has something changed in the conductivity of the world?

It is quite unfathomable what humans are capable of doing to other humans in the search of their own self glory and greedy agendas.

So myself is telling me today to keep going, to keep hoping, to continue sending strength and good thoughts toward the innocent people caught up in this crazy war and to know that there is always light behind the darkness.

Categories
contemplations Germany human rights inspiration morning coffee talk Photography street photography war

Daily Coffee Talk~ 85/365

The world around us is always changing, every second could bring a new outcome, could cause a new future to onset. What are we in control of? Only our choices, in the now.

Europe feels so turbulent at this time and that unsettlement, I feel echoed in me. I feel the shockwaves of the despair and fear inside of those facing the unfortunate aggression going on in the Ukraine, and the human in me has a very hard time separating from the pain of other humans at this time.

So I keep pressing on with art, with trying to stay creative and feeling the immense value of having a space where peace can still exist. Every new day feels like a new opportunity and the only way I can help is by remembering human purpose in defiance of those who oppress and who take away from the innocent.

Let’s pray again and again for peace so that life and art can have a chance in shaping our future.

Categories
contemplations inspiration italy morning coffee talk Photography street photography

Daily Coffee Talk~ 80/365

If we were robots, designed to be born, to live a span of life and then die, then life would have been a straight line of non-events.

But life is not like that and being human is so much more complex that straight lines are overtaken by curves. I often thought About how when you draw a straight line from point a to point b on planet earth, our beautiful globe, you end up with a curve…

Life is like that. There are ups and there are downs, there is joy and there is sadness, success and failure, and so much that makes you wonder why we were born into a duality state of affairs.

I trust in the reason why as much as I trust in my journey to ride the waves of earthly existence. I love life and its mysteries.

Good evening from Germany. The storm has passed, our heating seems to be fixed, the fireplace is quieting down and it’s almost time to slip into a peaceful night of sleep.

Let’s pray for a de-escalation in the Ukraine, because who needs another war!

Categories
contemplations Germany inspiration LEBANON morning coffee talk old age old people parenting Photography street photography

Daily Coffee Talk~ 79/365

Our fireplace today in Germany~

As long as I remember, when I still lived in Lebanon, my father would sit by the fireplace at our home at the foot of the mountain and on cold days continuously feed wood to the hungry fire and watch its raging flames and listen to its crackling sounds as it vanished into ashes.

It always made me think that there is a romantic in there hiding behind his seemingly hard exterior that he presented to the world.

The last 3 days, and in the middle of a storm here in Germany, our heating system broke down, so as we shuffle to get it fixed, I started using the fireplace as a means of generating warmth on these very cold days.

And guess what? I find myself as hypnotized by it as my father was and still is at over 85 years of age.

Life sometimes turns full circle on us…

Photo of my dad staring at his chimney 2 weeks ago in Lebanon taken by my sister.
Categories
art children contemplations Germany inspiration morning coffee talk Photography

Daily Coffee Talk~ 77/365

Sometimes my mind goes back to when I was a small child and I can for a split second reconnect to a time of pure joy.

Those were moments when all that existed was the present. Time had a different nature to it. It did not threaten me with the future or blame me for the past.

Is that child that lives in a state of pure joy still there somewhere? How many complex parts come together to make us who we are today?

I want to be that child again even for a brief moment every day.

Categories
art contemplations morning coffee talk Photography Uncategorized

Daily Coffee Talk~ 76/365

When you have a few words to say, and you let the words fade, you are happy to be blank, to be in the moment, where words are not necessary.

Such is being inside the domain of art.