Today I drove to cologne and walked around the amazing cathedral that forces you to travel back in time to days when life was slower if not harder and simpler if not less convenient. Inside the cathedral all was calm and filled with a sense of reverence. Outside, the square was buzzing with movement, cameras clicking, laughter, bubbles and the loud silence of those who have less and sit in corners waiting for some to give. And some do give…
Day 13 of 365
Images taken today in Cologne, Germany
Pingyao, an ancient town in the Shanxi province of China, completely walled, preserved and authentic looking, is home to the yearly Pingyao photography festival where thousands of photographer meet. I visited for 3 days as 2 of my photographs were curated and included in a show there and during the last 2 days, it rained endlessly setting a beautiful mood for photography. I walked and walked, got drenched and took some photos that I will treasure for always.
Some worlds will only allow you a hazy glimpse…
The most difficult thing about change is to not be allowed to do so. In a big city change is a way of life and conformity can be easily pushed aside to make room for a journey of personal development. But then there are some rare villages and tribes where personal development is championed above all else. I have seen one or two.
Only when we expand our perception to a much bigger picture does our inflated identity begin to melt revealing the truth that lies behind the walls of our minds.
The thing about the future is that is seems to happen on time and not wait for us to be ready to receive it. And always things appear to be later than we think, don’t they?
Today I was with a friend on a photo walk in an old Shanghai neighborhood condemned to demolition and we saw that from week to week homes were being demolished leaving in the rubble, shoes, clothing, old furniture, toys… It would seem that people had very little time to pack up and leave their homes before they were destroyed and we wondered at the levels of stress this must have caused a family that lived there possibly all their lives. Change is often associated with pain, even if it was a change were seeking all along.
Have you ever been so in love that you wanted to shout it to the whole world and scribble it on every surface, carve it on every tree and note it in every diary? Isn’t it the greatest gift of all to feel that at least once in your life?
The sun favors places like Tuscany. It floods it with its warmth and the locals just mirror that by coloring their homes in tribute to the sun.
~Curiosity thrives behind half open windows~
Lucca~ Toscana
Behind her pink window, she sat, she looked, she watched, she felt safe, she followed me with her eyes, she questioned me with her mind, and she half smiled when I waved goodbye.
