Catalina Foothills Sunset — Image by kenne
I went to the [desert] because I wished to live deliberately,
to front only the essential facts of life,
and see if I could not learn what it had to teach,
and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.
— Henry David Thoreau
Two-tailed Swallowtail — Photo-Artistry by kenne
“Let us first be as simple and well as Nature ourselves,
dispel the clouds which hang over our brows,
and take up a little life into our pores.
Do not stay to be an overseer of the poor,
but endeavor to become one of the worthies of the world.”
— Henry David Thoreau
(April 30, 2011) — Image by kenne
— Henry David Thoreau
Autumn On Mt. Lemmon — Image by kenne
Nature
by Henry David Thoreau
O Nature! I do not aspire
To be the highest in thy choir, –
To be a meteor in thy sky,
Or comet that may range on high;
Only a zephyr that may blow
Among the reeds by the river low;
Give me thy most privy place
Where to run my airy race.
In some withdrawn, unpublic mead
Let me sigh upon a reed,
Or in the woods, with leafy din,
Whisper the still evening in:
Some still work give me to do, –
Only – be it near to you!
For I’d rather be thy child
And pupil, in the forest wild,
Than be the king of men elsewhere,
And most sovereign slave of care;
To have one moment of thy dawn,
Than share the city’s year forlorn.
Naturalist David Lazaroff and several other naturalists with the 2011 SCVN Training Class, Day 1 — Image by kenne
I was a member of the 2011 Sabino Canyon Volunteer Naturalists (SCVN) class. During the fall training I wrote the following poem, posting it on this blog:
STANDING AT THE ALTAR OF NATURE
When we stand
at the altar of nature,
we stand with the greats;
Ralph Waldo Emerson,
Henry David Thoreau,
and John Muir,
each having helped define
our relationship
with nature and language –
“every natural fact is a symbol
of some spiritual fact,
. . . words are signs of natural facts.”
Nature’s beauty becomes
a source of spiritual energy
connecting all things
into a universal whole
with the energy of our
thoughts and will.
We stand at nature’s altar
not separate from her,
seeing her in the flowers,
insects, animals, mountains,
creating a unified landscape
of our inward and outward senses.
Like all relationships,
the experience depends
on the degree of harmony
between us and nature,
therefore becoming a gift
granted while walking with nature
as she is embraced in our minds –
Enlighten, she shares her secrets,
making the universe more “transparent.”
Yet the gift may only offer a glimpse,
to be shared in images and words,
charming all living things.
Commenting on my poem, SCVN member, Walt Tornow, wrote that my poem ”. . . captures beautifully my feelings about being in the mountains.” He went on to share the following:
GOD, GRACE, AND GRATITUDE
Finding God in the wilderness …
Here for the grace of God am I …
Grateful to be, to be here, and be given the opportunity and capacity to enjoy the many gifts/ blessings around me.
– Walt Tornow
Naturalist, Gwen Swanson, demonstrates “panning” to students in the “Strike It Rich” program.
This creekside activity allows children to learn about the difference between rocks and minerals
by panning for garnets in the sand along Sabino Creek, and the importance of water in forming the canyon.
Image by kenne
SCVN Training nature walk with naturalist, Bill Kaufman (Fall 2011) — Image by kenne
“Woodlands” (Aspen Draw Trail on Mt. Lemmon) — Computer Art by kenne
–Henry David Thoreau
Image by kenne
Standing At Nature’s Alter
When we stand
at the altar of nature,
we stand with the greats;
Ralph Waldo Emerson,
Henry David Thoreau,
and John Muir,
each having helped define
our relationship
with nature and language —
“every natural fact is a symbol
of some spiritual fact,
. . . words are signs of natural facts.”
Nature’s beauty becomes
a source of spiritual energy
connecting all things
into a universal whole
with the energy of our
thoughts and will.
We stand at nature’s alter as man
not separate from her,
seeing her in the flowers,
insects, animals, mountains,
creating a unified landscape
of our inward and outward senses.
Like all relationships,
the experience depends
on the degree of harmony
between man and nature,
therefore becoming a gift
granted while walking with nature
as she is embraced in our minds –
Enlighten, she shares her secrets,
making the universe more “transparent.”
Yet the gift may only offer a glimpse,
to be shared in images and words,
charming all living things.
kenne
(First posted August 30, 2011)
Sonoran Desert Yellow Trumpet Flower — Image by kenne
— from Walden or Life in the Woods — Where I Lived, and What I Lived For by Henry David Thoreau
Searching for Nature’s Sweetness — Computer Paintings by kenne
Morning Clouds Moving On, Madera Canyon in the Santa Rita Mountains — Images by kenne
— Henry David Thoreau
Image by kenne
Orange Skipperling Butterfly — Image by kenne
This butterfly is small with a fast skipping flight, with an almost blurred, wing beat, so it’s not likely you will find an image of the orange skipperling in flight. In looking for butterflies to photograph, currently skippers are the most common here in the desert. Although they are considered butterflies, the traits of large eyes and short antennae are different.
kenne
— Henry David Thoreau
