Movement : Opportunity

A camera in my hand makes me move. It makes me get out of the little world I know and abandon the paths I travel every day. Routine leads me to believe in the illusion that the world stands still: Every day I see the same things, the same buildings, the same streets, the same people. The only thing that changes is the size of the pot holes I have to avoid while driving along the same routes. The illusion of sameness allows my mind to wander off; I lose my focus.
Venturing into unknown neighborhoods puts me in a state of awareness. My senses are alert, I perceive buildings, streets, people, colors, textures, light, shadows, and (sometimes) ignore pot holes because my attention is focused on a little spot in my field of vision. When I move, everything else moves with me, and soon I realize that this movement follows a pattern, a rhythm. A dance (even when it’s wild) allows you to anticipate the next step. I lift my camera to my eye and hold my breath…
Others before me have described this experience as “prayer”, as a state of mind in which you are deeply aware of your surroundings and of your place in it. You communicate with something that is bigger than what your mind can fathom. It is almost physical.

Movement brings opportunity. So often have I left my house without an idea of what I would blip that day and have come home with pictures that are still very dear to me. It’s as if movement in itself, combined with awareness and presence, creates gifts of beauty. 


(Today's blip is a palm seed the size of a fingertip.)