Photo of the day - 3rd September

I am very tempted to call this image "Footprints" or "Footprints in the sand". There are a few of variants of this poem which can easily found on the web. This poem is commonly attributed to Margaret Fishback Powers (who wrote this in 1964). However, it appears that this poem was actually written much early in 1936 by another lady, Mary Stevenson.

Here is Mary Stevenson's version:

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.

In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only.

This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord,

“You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?”

The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”

Finally, a note of this image... I took this photo at a place called Perry Sandhills near the town of Wentworth in NSW. Perry Sandhills is a vast 400 acres of continuously shifting sand dunes. From the vantage point in which I took the photo one could easily imagine being in a desert. I was also trying to explore minimalism and capturing the wave patterns in the sand in within this landscape.

I hope you this photo as much as I do.

Lamentation of a A NAS sufferer

Once again, this poem never stopped me from smiling, or should I say, very lamenting.

The NAS Sufferer's Tragic Lament

Oh, how I wish I’d never gone Into a shop that stocked Nikon. I could have simply walked on past The shiny bodies and the glass. I should have spent my cash on booze Or bought my wife some fancy shoes, Or gone to any other store Instead of walking through that door. And even once I’d gone inside My fate remained mine to decide. I could have chosen something cute – Perhaps a Canon point-and-shoot? But, like a moth towards a flame I walked straight past the other names. The Nikon salesman looked at me And rubbed his hands with overt glee. “A camera, sir? You bet your ---!” And that was how it came to pass That in a minute, maybe less, I owned a new D70s. I captured everything that moved, I exponentially improved. My work would hang in the Smithsonian! But then I stumbled on Nikonians… And suddenly I knew the truth, Was faced with concrete, graphic proof. My pictures sucked! My gear was tragic! I had no talent, much less magic.

And so I read and read some more And soon became a crashing bore -- An uninvited tip dispenser On depth of field and full-frame sensors. But, to my shame, my main reaction Was chronic gear dissatisfaction. Woe is me, alack, alas – I had a fatal case of NAS! I had to have the very best There was no way I’d accept less And so I spent and spent some more On lenses, bodies, gear galore. It had to end, that crazy spree, And did when my bank called on me. The heartless swine, I'm sure he laughed As he shut down my overdraft. My credit cards went in the garbage They threatened to foreclose my mortgage My B&H account went too, Along with my (now) ex-wife Sue. So let my tale serve as a caution To stay away from Ebay auctions. Don’t rush out and buy the new Just because you’re NAS-struck too. And what of me, your tragic scribe? How have I managed to survive? I’m well, no really, it’s true, I’m free! But I REALLY want that new D3…

Source: Unknown... would love to discover who the original author was.

Spring in Araluen Botanic Park

Spring in Perth brings new sunshine and gentle cool breezes. It is also when flowers begin to blossom. Hearing the news that the wonderful Araluen Botanic Park is having financial and council problems, and that it may have to shut down next year, my family and I decided to go with a few friends to visit this wonderful park before it disappears like the many other tourist attractions we used to have in Perth.

This post is the beginning of a series of posts I will put up to showcase the wonderful flowers and settings in the park. Deep down I hope and pray that this wonderful park will continue to survive and to give us opportunities to enjoy its beauty and the beauty of the flowers therein.

Araluen Bontanic Park is well known for its Tulips collection. Every spring, the garden will inevitably be dressed by an array of colourful tulips from around the world. It is therefore, fitting, to present some of these wonderful flowers for all to share.





The Tulip (Poem by Ernestine Northover)

Tossing turban style contours, with an aloofness as one passes by,
Utilizing every charm it possesses, under a lupin blue cloudless sky,
Like a guardsman, gallantly standing, holding up his noble head high,
In rainbow colours, brilliant and stately, a vision to surely yield a sigh,
Ponder thus upon the regal tulip, it has pure beauty, you cannot deny.



Clean as a lady
cool as glass
fresh without
fragance
the tulip was.
(Poem By Humbert Wolfe 1924)

God's mercies are new every morning

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases.
His mercies never come to an end.
They are new every morning, new every morning,
Great is Thy faithfulness, O Lord. Great is Thy faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-24 says "Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him."

Lead Me By The Lavender

Lead Me By The Lavender - Copyright ©2003 Garrett Earl Johnson

Lead me by the lavender, beside the fields of green.
Lead me where you'd have me go, to places never seen.
Lead me beside the stillest waters where all your blessings flow.
Lead me precious Father, lead me where you'd have me go.
Lead me with your precious hands, marred by sins, not your own.
Lead me on before you Father lead me on before your throne.
Lead me with love divine and let my heart be thine.
Lead me on forever Lord let your love be mine.
Lead me ever constant, lead me ever kind.
Lead me on forever, ever gentle on my mind.
Lead me on to places never seen, to fields of evergreen.
Lead me on precious Father, ever bowed upon my knees.

A Lighthouse Unto Thy Feet

Jesus is a Lighthouse
A Tower in the dark
The One who holds the lantern
A great enduring Spark.

Like a flame that burns eternal
He’s a Torch, forever true
The One who holds the answers
When I don’t know what to do.

He’s the One who holds the candle
Over angry waves so steep
He’s the lifeline that doth save me
In a raging sea, so deep.

He’s a strong and steady Pilot
An answer to my plea
The One who throws the anchor
When I’m drifting out to sea

He’s a brightly shining Beacon
Always steady like a rock
A Fortress when I’m weary
A Harbor on life’s dock.

Jesus is a Lighthouse
In Him, I will abide
A Hand when I am weary
A never-ending Tide.

Author/Written By:
Marilyn Ferguson
©2006

Vintage Lighthouse Hosted on Zooomr

Poem "An Autumn Leaf"

An Autumn Leaf
by Frank Maguire

A leaf once green, a vibrant green
Laced with a silken gown
Now hangs it's head, a weary head
The leaf has turned to brown

A rushing wind, a bracing wind
That blows incessantly
The leaf is weak, so very weak
As it falls down from the tree

A spiral path, a weary path
Is woven without a sound
The sun it sleeps, a deepening sleep
As the leaf falls to the ground

A thought of life, a fragile life
Now hanging by a thread
A thought of death, a seasonal death
As the leaf will soon be dead

A bed of leaves, a grave of leaves
Lie motionless today
The summertime, has had it's time
Now Autumn is on it's way

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This poem was found here:
http://www.poems-and-quotes.com/nature/poems.php?id=780587