what then must I do?

black friday

the endless pursuits of ourselves
it resounds so deeply in my soul
these actions (self pursuit) are all I used to know

the money spent on this day could change the world
but why would we want to change a world in which we have grown comfortable?
like the abused wife who won’t leave because...
she thinks she deserves it, or knows no other way out?

‘comfort can no longer be comfortable for those who seek what is not at the market’

life, liberty and the pursuit of....happiness (or comfort)
how do we escape the idol of comfort?

I have been wrestling with obvious need in the world (poverty)

not the people who cannot afford a house, or a new car
the people who don’t have base human needs met:
food
shelter
clothing
water
and compassion

sometimes it’s hard to look past my obvious wants.
but if I sit still long enough, the sight of this need is staggering

Tolstoy writes of this struggle in ‘What then must we do?”
not too far in the book we are introduced to this plight against poverty.
His dilemma is how to advance the cause to end poverty.

early in his struggle he quotes our Lord “The man with two coats should share with him who has none, the one who has food should do the same.” (Luke 3:11)

I am almost convinced we are not called to end poverty.
I am convinced we are called to administer grace and mercy to those in need
regardless of place or disposition of life

The problem lies in, once again, my comfort

helping others that i do not relate with is uncomfortable
unless i make an anonymous donation
(which sometimes threatens my comfortable lifestyle)

what are we to do?
act
period. we are called to action.
this might actually help us more than those we seek to help

"Most men lead lives of quiet desperation"

Ah, the blog. To blog or not to blog? That is the question. The answer,?
Is anyone going to read this? (and ultimately, does anyone care?)

It’s not necessarily journaling. My good friend Abe is an amazing journaler. If he did not journal, he would not be the same, yet has a hard time putting it on the net.

Why? Am I afraid to find out that no one cares? Or worse, that my life is proved to be hopelessly boring?

I am reading about a guy whose life is to be made into a movie. He has discovered that they must elaborate, because he says, most of his life until now has not been an exciting story.

So he started writing a better story with his life.
-biking across the U.S.
-climbing Machu Picchu
-falling in love (and for the first time saying the words)
-forming a mentoring program for fatherless kids

This story-less life has led him to write, so to speak, a better life story. At what point do we realise the movies of our lives have gone straight to DVD?

All the signs are usually there, usually in low box office numbers.
Our friends and co-workers. Our families and the people we avoid. Are they all telling us indirectly--our story sucks?

O.K., so now what. Most of us know that. You see the guy at the Conoco, loading up ‘the cube’ (a 24 pack of Coors Light). He knows it. People at work, working for the weekends. Families checking out on each other, living separate lives.

The guy in the book says the the protagonist (the main character in the story) needs an event that forces story to occur. Car crash, death of someone close, kids in trouble, you know, the life stuff. What do we do when these things happen? I suppose it goes one of two ways; you look at life as either precious or random. Maybe not so philosophically eloquent, but nevertheless, growing greater or lesser due to these events.

But, he says, also you can force the turn yourself. He forced himself into a seemingly impossible trek, to become fit. Through this he also found love. A great chapter in the story of his life? Yes.

So I’ll maybe use this blog to help reveal the ebb and flow in my story. Realising through the display of my work, maybe, how to better write the plot.

-s

Grizzly Downhill Race!

These are some shots from the first downhill race on the new trail at Big Mountain.
Notice the kid on the red Kona. He finished in the top 10. He's eleven. 11!?

Enjoy

We will see what we will see...(or the heart wants what the heart wants)

Last night’s talk with my ‘guardo camino’ (road guard) Abe was fascinating.
The mystery of the allurement of photography.

Is photography subjective?

I think it is only subjective from the viewer’s point of view.
The photographer sees a moment and tries to capture it.
It is then in the viewer’s hand to unlock the mystery.

“A prophet will not be accepted in his home town”, the Bible says.

Most of the prophets were misunderstood.
They had a burden to carry-to tell or show the people a different way of seeing things.
To reveal things the way they really were.

It can be like this for artists.

Something weighing on the heart.
Something that must be explored,
revealed,
presented,
and most of the time,
misunderstood.

This is the folly of the artist.
Most people will not understand your work-
-unless they are willing to step out of their comfort zone.
This can be a problem.

We like comfort.
























I guess the question that remains then is this:

Does the viewer want to unlock the mystery?

This is part of the reason people respond differently to different photos.
The psychology behind photography is a mystery in itself.
Pictures can tell us things about the world around us,
the people we love and the mystery locked inside our hearts.

Interesting, mysterious abstract photos can be hard to unravel,
but at its very essence,
they can reveal who we are and how we respond to our emotions.




Whether it be pictures,
paintings or sculptures,
art can be subjective to the viewer.

But it is this challenge that keeps us (the artist) attracted to creating or seeking that moment that confronts,
inspires and reveals emotion in the viewer.

friends in love

I recently had the pleasure of capturing two people in love,
committing their lives to each other,
displaying light to the world
and others around them.

todd and leslie

These are some moments of life, love and relationship.
I am still reeling from getting to be a part
of who they are.

thanks guys,
i pray blessing upon your union
and that you will forever grow in love, life and spirit.

we are all line-steppers

“He is what you would call a habitual line-stepper.”
-Charlie Murphy


We are all involved in a perceived reality of some sort.
Perception can be a cruel dictator though.

Most of the time it seems that perception equals reality.
Even if I don’t believe this, it is still fleshed out in my actions.

Where is the line between fantasy and reality?
What if you could not tell the difference between dreaming and waking?
It might actually be normal to drift between these two planes of consciousness.

But how much?
When the lines blur for too long,
men in white coats show up to take you to your new home.

How much of your daily though is spent in fantasy?
How long before this fantasy becomes a ‘perceived’ reality?
and how much of this exercise is healthy?

I suppose this is why we need each other.
We need that other perspective to help keep us in check.

I don’t know how many times I have had ideas to bounce off of friends
and had the look of ‘you sure ‘bout that bro’?’

This is not only needed, but it is good.
Maybe the greatest friendship test is how log they will stick around
after you have revealed to them your wildest ideas.

Our Lord faced this:
“Unless you eat of My flesh and drink of My blood, you can have no part of Me.”

People were out like ’80’s music.

So goes the heart ache of this so-called life.
Jesus faced it,
and you and I face it, whether we want to see it or not.

Is fantasy bad?
hardly so.

I believe everything is a sign pointing to the One we were meant to look to.

C.S. Lewis writes:

“The books or the music in
which we thought the beauty was located
will betray us if we trust to them; it was
not in them, it only came through them,
and what came through them was longing.
These things—the beauty, the memory of
our own past—are good images of what we
really desire; but if they are mistaken for
the thing itself they turn into dumb idols,
breaking the hearts of their worshippers.
For they are not the thing itself; they are
only the scent of a flower we have not
found, the echo of a tune we have not
heard, news from a country we have never
yet visited. “

So fantasy might actually point to a greater reality.

I guess we might be careful what we dream about for:

“You can only hope for what you desire”


Much love,
-s

what do we know (in part)?

... For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face: now I know
in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. ...

1 Corinthians 13:12




Scientists are currently exploring the theory that there are up to eleven dimensions.

Planes of existence beyond our perception.

How can we go about even imagining this concept
when most of us shape our reality on perception?

Believe what we see...
sometimes.
Well if it is only sometimes,
then what else do we base our beliefs on?

Are our thoughts based on the lowest common denominator?
emotions,
feelings,
experiences,
projections.

What then is really happening?

I believe that we have a purpose
when you see the world with purpose and meaning
it changes not just us,
this view changes the world.

My friends, this is an on going challenge.
I want to explore why we do what we do and discover,
together, how to be honest with ourselves and,
with the help of the Holy Spirit,
overcome our fears and live the life we were born to live.

love life and know that I am
yours always,

-s

the right call

so lately i have been inspired to make images
to attempt to convey a feeling or idea
i ve been wondering about direction
our direction
as people
as spirits
as gods

what is it that we think we are doing

create
hide
loathe
organize
seek
infatuate
annihilate

what am i doing

like a mirror i see the world and it reveals me

Heather and Clay

Here are a few select photos from Heather and Clay's wedding.
It was one of the best weddings I have ever been a part of.
Thanks guys!

my Son, beloved son, what is life?
pondering more questions than answers,
the path curves beyond sight.

to find our way amidst the clouds and the graves,
to find out who we are,
who we are to be.

eternally seeking,
the journey unfolds incomplete,
"We can only hope for what we desire",
'till what you desire becomes your destiny,
whether victory or defeat.