Transformation

Apple Inspires Completions – Picture to Ponder – Volume 4 – Issue 33

by Sheila Finkelstein on September 10, 2008

sliced golden delicious apple

another view of cut golden delicious apple

Today’s Picture to Ponder Photos
Sections of a dehydrating Gold Delicious Apple that had been in the refrigerator for some time.

Today, as I started clicking through photos in my MacIntosh’s iPhoto program to make a choice for feature photos, these apples caught my eye. It was the humor I saw in the sideways glance and winking eye of the apple half in the lower photo that first grabbed my attention.

In the upper photo, I think it’s the somewhat unexpected structure of the apple that we see that I find so interesting. And, “yes,” for those of you who, along with me, see faces in my photos, I do see the two eyes.

Today’s Self-Reflecting Queries
Today, I invite you to look into your life to see:

1. Are there things you’ve been saying you would do and then haven’t?

2. If “yes,” is there an intention you wish to declare, something that will make it easier for you to follow through?

3. Are there any games you would like to create for yourself to have them happen, especially when you get stuck?

4. Are there “permissions” you need to be giving yourself? – Perhaps, simply allowing yourself to have fun?

My Story of the Day leading to these queries:
Last month, you may recall, I documented the peeling away of the layers of an onion. If you missed it, you can see some photos and start following on the SECOND PAGE of the blog.

When I started out photographing the onion, my original plan had been to do daily postings on the blog of vegetable photos, continuing with fruits the next week. In preparation for the latter, one day I pulled an apple from my refrigerator. I discovered that it had been in there long beyond the time for tasty eating. The apple did, however, make an enjoyable photo subject.

In the meantime, I got so caught up in the Onion Story that I went well beyond the original intention of one week of vegetable photo posting and totally lost interest in continuing on with the fruits.

As usual, after I made my choices I started second guessing them, “Should I even do the apple? Is this the right choice? What about the lighting, color, quality, etc. etc.” And I decided to stick with my first instincts, at the same time uploading onto FlickR several more of the photos which you can see by simply clicking on APPLE- INSIDE VIEWS.

As always, it’s when I start writing that the SRQ themes develop and for today, I saw, that once again they are falling into the Intention – Completion realm, with a little bit of the “trust” factor thrown in. The latter for today is trusting that there are those of you out there for whom something in these apple photos, and subsequent queries, will be making a difference for you.

On the lighter side, it could be as simple as checking your refrigerator for the credible edibles.

In terms of completions and incompletions, I have been looking this week at places in my life where I have incompletions. Mainly they seem to be in those areas where I had set intentions. And, I’m taking little steps this week, stages of completion.

As I’ve stated, in prior issues of Picture to Ponder, when I remind myself of my stated intentions, it becomes easier to complete and there is a lot less brain “chatter”. And, sure enough, a couple of major things have been accomplished already, beyond what I thought was possible, in some long lingering projects I had dropped, as well as in current ones.

To conclude here, insofar as it relates to today’s discussion, I am commiting for the next week to the daily posting of fruit photos completing on the earlier expressed intention of a month ago, staying open to what might occur.

Given, I’m making up the game, I will also give myself the permission to use some photos I took a few weeks ago when I thought that would be my next activity.

Is there anything to which you would like to commit for the next week, something that might not already have been on your list?

As always, do remember to have fun. You can even divert momentarily and have some fun with
FIREFLAG PLAY
In the nature of fun, check out FIREFLAG LEAF, TALKING IN THE WIND, an 18 second video clip I posted on YouTube. I suspect many of you could create some great expressions that could be coming out of his/her “mouth.”

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Picture to Ponder – Vol 4 – 32: New Views Inspired by Hibsicus Flowers

by Sheila Finkelstein on September 3, 2008

underside of a red hibiscus against a privacy fence

delicate front of a red hibisucus flower

Today’s Picture to Ponder Photos

Red Hibiscus flowers on bush in my back yard. The upper photo is of the underside of the flower, backed by my privacy fence.

Today’s Self-Reflecting Queries
Today I invite you to look into your life:

1. Are there people or situations in your life looming large, right in front of you, whom you are walking around or ignoring? These might not even be intentional actions.

If so, I invite you to stop, look at and spend some time with what you are now seeing. Is any thing new opening up for you?

2. Are there beautiful objects, people and/or situations in your life that you look at all the time from only one perspective? If so, I invite you to take some time and examine it/them from several directions and then to, again, pay attention to what might be opening up for you.

My “story” of the day, leading to these questions -The red hibiscus bush, the source of these flowers, is quite large, almost five feet in height and probably, at least, four feet across. Right now a couple of the branches are crawling across the ground. The bush sits outside my patio window and, when I open my eyes to it, it is the first thing I see every morning as I walk out onto my patio to sit and write my “morning pages.”

The point to today’s story is that the hibiscus bush is also right in front of the maranta – prayer plant – I’ve been photographing daily. See Unconditional Love – The Maranta Story on my blog. At times, I’ve even stepped over the branches to get closer to the prayer plant. And the hibiscus is only a foot or two away from the passionflower vine that I’ve also been photographing daily.

In the case of both the maranta and passionflower, I have taken on the theme of observing daily the opening up, growth and expansion of these two plants. I’ve moved from “peeling away the layers of an onion, analogous to peeling away the layers of ourselves” (note the several blog posts) to observing “adding on,” so-to-speak.

In my mind, the hibiscus bush had no relevance to what I had honed in on for daily picture-taking focus, so I simply ignored it. Then one recent day, the camera and I did stop and pay attention to the delicacy of the front view of one of the flowers in the late afternoon light and to the beauty, grace and stateliness of the underside of another.

We, thus come back to today’s queries. Where in your life may you be ignoring beauty that is right in front of you? And, where are you only paying attention to one view or perspective?

As always, have fun and play with these questions.

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Unconditional Love of a Maranta – Prayer Plant

by Sheila Finkelstein on September 2, 2008

“Unconditional Love” – Can plants love us? We could get into a philosophical dialog here. We could say anything is a reflection of ourselves, so if we are putting love out to someone, or something, it reflects it back to us. This may not always work with people.

They do say that animals often love their owners unconditionally. And for this post, I am standing in – Plants CAN grace us with unconditional love.

View of inside maranta plant in 2005

Prayer Plant in 2005

It is my experience with my “maranta” plant that has generated this query/discussion. My prayer plant has been with my husband and me, now me alone, in some form, for close to 40 years, or more! It would seem, based on this one plant, that they can love us unconditionally, beyond all measures of neglect.

Three years ago in Picture to Ponder, I wrote about the “abuse” this plant had taken over the years and how it always bounced back, no matter how much I neglected it. See Maranta Photos for the other photos linked to in that article.

A few months ago, I was sure the plant had finally given up on me. I was on my way out for a 5-day trip when I remembered to water it before I left. When I went to it, I discovered that most of the leaves had dried up from lack of water AND the plant was infested with, seemingly, hundreds of minute insects.

No longer could I simply pull off brown leaves. There was no way I could debug it. I took it outside to dump. Before leaving it, I did detect a very tiny, stem with 2 leaves and a very faint root. I found a smaller, clean pot and fresh soil and planted this tiny seedling, before leaving for my trip, then forgot about it. I was so sure that it was “gone” I never even thought to photograph it.

Fast forward three months – Miraculously that plant is growing and bringing on new shoots. Unfortunately, so sure was I of its demise, I never thought to photograph it. Six weeks later it was blooming healthily, already having unfolded several new leaves.

maranta 6 weeks after having been transplanted

maranta inside - 8-27-08

In the meantime, the bug infested plant that I had discarded as completely lost, I had thrown in a corner close to the house against a fence. Then about two and half months after the upset of discovering what I had considered the “hopelessly infested” plant, I glanced over at where I had tossed it and saw that a portion of the plant had survived, although the plastic pot had broken down.

maranta outside - plastic pot deteriorated

After several weeks of seeing a couple of leaves, still somewhat alive in the deteriorating plastic pot, I decided to put it in the ground.

unfolding leaves in center of maranta planted outside

Maranta in Ground

Now it has become an almost daily practice for me to photograph both the indoor and the outdoor plants, as I spend a moment or two, with each, in gratitude.

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Sunset’s Radiating Possibilities – Picture to Ponder – Vol 4 – Issue 31

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 26, 2008

sunset framed by trees and rooftops

sunset in Boynton Beach framed by palm tree leaves

sunset rays

Today’s Picture to Ponder Photos
Views of an August Sunset in my Boynton Beach, Florida neighborhood – No description necessary

I invite you to allow your words and being fill the spaces the views may open up for you.

Today’s Self-Reflecting Queries
I am moved for this issue to start with the queries, then follow with the story that led into them.

Today I am inviting you to:

1 – look into your life at areas where you “know” the answers and may not be very open to anything more than what you “already know.”

2 – check also to see if there are areas where you are looking through small “windows,” then assuming the rest of the picture is more of the same.

3 – consider – When you find that you have made a mistake, do you spend most of the time, soon after, berating yourself for what you missed, and continue dwelling on the missing? Or, do you quickly lift yourself out of that state and find the pluses and, possibly, miracles in what is?

“How did these questions evolve from today’s photos?” you might be wondering.

Late in the afternoon the other day, our South Florida sky was clear and the clouds were magnificent, light and fluffy. I was certain there was going to be a spectacular sunset. I thought when the time came I’d go to Green Cay Wetlands, five minutes from my home. The broad expanse of sky and different sections of water have provided me, and you in Picture to Ponder, many wonderful sunset views and reflections.

I got involved in other things, forgetting my plans until about 45 minutes before the sun was due to set. At that point, I glanced out my kitchen window with its western exposure. The sky didn’t look very promising. Given I have very high trees and palms in front of a high wall, there is not a very broad view, but what I saw looked overcast with grey, dense clouds. I needed to eat and decided that it was not worth the time and gas to drive over to the Wetlands.

About 15 to 20 minutes before the sun was scheduled to set, as confirmed by information online, I decided to simply walk, with my camera, around my neighborhood. Once outside, and beyond the limits of my house, I saw I had been mistaken.

The sky was beautiful with varied clouds and colors. I proceeded to spend a few minutes debating with myself, “Should I pull the car out of the garage and go to Green Cay for ten minutes?” and more “should I’s”, “shouldn’t I’s.”

I finally decided to stay where I was, forget what I might have missed and “play” with what I had. In addition to the colors and shapes in the sky, I observed that I had far more trees and rooflines available to frame them than I would have had at Green Cay. I began to have fun doing exactly that with my camera.

Then at the very end of the available light, I was treated to the spectacular view of the expanding rays of the dark blues against the brilliance of the pinks and oranges of the clouds and sky. I was reminded of having been told that I would be having choices of several different paths on where I would be moving next in my life, all of them being good.

I wondered, “Would the perspective that we see in the sky in the third photo even have shown up at Green Cay?” It matters not. By being open, I had an amazing experience to cap the evening.

So, again, are there places in your life where you can widen the window out of which you are viewing your circumstances? Are you open to possibilities coming from “not knowing” in addition to those you think you “know?”

As always, have fun and play with these questions.

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Picture to Ponder – Vol 4 – Issue 30: Moonlight and Flowers – Sadness and Celebration

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 19, 2008

close-up of a sunflower with alstromeria - watercolor effect

Full moon in clouds with insert

IMPORTANT: If these photos inspire writing or anything else that has you share it and the photo, please be certain to credit the source, including the URL of this issue, http://www.eteletours.com/v4-issue30.html

Today’s Picture to Ponder Photos
Two very different photos, as explained in the Queries section.

The upper photo is a view focusing in on Sunflowers surrounded by Alstromeria in a floral arrangement in a ceramic vase.

sunflowers and alstromeria in a vase in the home of artist Sally Cooper

(Note the painting in the background is one of the many wonderful paintings of artist, Sally Cooper, who very graciously hosted a gathering of member artists from WITVA (Women In The Visual Arts).

When I came across the featured photo the other day in one of my folders, I felt uplifted, having the momentary feeling that I was looking at a water color rather than a photograph. It seemed to be a perfect one to feature today, as so many people throughout the United States, at least, are experiencing wet, dreary and threatening weather.

The lower photo is a photograph of a Full Moon Amidst Clouds on a recent clear night. The completed image is a result of using several processes in the Photoshop Elements Course I just completed. Click on Lesson 5-6 and scroll the bottom of the page to see the unaltered photos and other exercises in that class.

I include it here because I get the feeling of celebration from the photo, with the lilt of the center image.

Intro to Today’s Self-Reflecting Queries
As I wind down from all the work that has been involved in preparing for the changeover, moving Picture to Ponder from one publisher to another, there have been several layers of sadness for me. The first is that I’ve really appreciated the service I’ve had from EZezine for the almost four years that I have been working with them, so there is that feeling of loss.

Then there has been my concern for making certain that everyone who cares about Picture to Ponder is ensured of having the opportunity to continue. Once doing that, I’m left with the sadness of the loss of those subscribers who have not responded and will no longer be on the list. Of course, they may not have been opening the issues in the first place.

I shared my feelings with two masterminding buddies and close friends and asked what they thought of my featuring the moody moon/cloud photos for this “last” issue. They did not see the one I ultimately used here since it hadn’t yet been done. I wrote that I had a lively one (the flowers) which had been my original choice.

I was reminded that this is the “first” issue for many of you AND I could be viewing
the whole thing as a celebration of new beginnings. Thank you, Morgine and Marifran!

The Queries
Coming from what I experienced, I invite you to look at:

1. Are there places in your life, where you are focussing on what’s missing rather than on what’s available?

2. When you do see, acknowledge and honor what’s there, do you allow yourself to celebrate it? If so, how?

3. When you are in a quandry, or are feeling sad, do you simply shut down, withdraw, or are you able to seek out and ask for support?

4. Do you remain aware of what methods you can use to create shifts for yourself?

For me in addition to communicating with my friends and support team, I was able to turn my energy into a creative venture. While playing with the photos in Photoshop, fulfilling on other coursework, I wound up with a totally unexpected result, a way to use both images, celebrating an “aliveness” theme.

While working with the photos I had no hidden agenda or attachment to results and that, I say, is what made it work.

Where, if at all, can you find yourself in the latter example?

As always, have fun with these questions as you explore and play.

I’d love to hear from you. Remember this issue is also posted on our new PHOTOGRAPHY AND TRANSFORMATION BLOG. Simply fill in the box under REPLY to place your comments.

And, while you’re there be sure to check out the final photos of the Onion Layers through to Layer 13.

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Red Onion – The Last Layers (13+) – The End or the Beginning?

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 19, 2008

red onion before starting to peel layers on the 13th level
How the onion appeared before I started the last stages of discovering the core.

red onion core with several more segments
Several more sections of the inner core unfold

onion layer peels from last layers

 

peels of all the inner sections of this round
The shavings/skins of what unpeeled from layers 12 and 13 – Do we focus on what we took away or all the parts that remain?

 

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Red Onion – Layer 12 Peeling

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 18, 2008

peeling away layer 12 of red onion
Seems like the inner flame

starting the peeling of layer 12


Delicate and Standing Firm

the
with some of the peels

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Red Onion – Peeling Away Layer 11

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 18, 2008

red onion as layer 11 is peeled from the large section

If you have been following along you will have noted that in last week’s Picture to Ponder post here I had raced ahead to showing Layer 10, covering a summation of my process, and then on the blog went back to showing preceding Layer photos.

Here in Layer 11 photos, the third inner section appears. I think I am one being, generally neglecting the other parts. It’s usually my “head” (comprised of thoughts) that I think of as the largest part. Then there is the “heart” of me, which feels, often suppresses, my love for people and things. What is this third part now being revealed?

thick skins of layers peeled on level 11

Note how thick the “skins” of the layers are, even at this delicate level with, seemingly, little remaining to be exposed. How strong our protection is!

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Red Onion – Peeling Layer 9

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 15, 2008

red onion peeling away layer 9peeling away from the smaller sectioin both sections peeled on layer 9 - pieces left in between  space in between two sections cleaned up in Red Onion layer 9 From jagged peeling to cleaning out, with X-acto knife, the space in between the two sections. Seemingly nothing more to be peeled from the smaller section. 

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Red Onion Layer 8 – Peeling Away the Layers

by Sheila Finkelstein on August 14, 2008

In the issue of Picture to Ponder this week, the previous post on this blog, or accessible by clicking on PTP – Vol 4 – Issue 29 I wrote about racing through the layers of the rest of the onion in one sitting to “get to the end” of the project. In the meantime, I’ve left you wondering, perhaps, about what was in between. Thus, I’m backing up for you.

Red onion peeling away layers 2 and layer 8

I started this time peeling away the outer layer of the smaller section which had emerged in layer 5. Because this section seemed so small and delicate, rather than plunging in with my fingers and ripping away the layer, I took a knife and slowly and gently started peeling. I was surprised to notice how thick the layer was, compared to what had been peeling away from the larger section, as can be seen in the next photo.

Another view of Red onion peeling away layers 2 and layer 8

Once again I got rough on the dominant section. The smaller one looks so delicate and vulnerable. I could create a lot more observations and queries here and I’ll leave that to you for today.

both onion segments completely exposed at the end of peeling layer 8

Nice and smooth, the sections, feeling quite exposed. The bottoms of the layers, jagged in between. Can’t reach them with my knife or small scissors. They remain as memories of what was.

a humorous view of red onion querying our seriousness

A different view of the second photo here today. I laughed when I saw it. Perhaps it’s a reminder to stop taking ourselves so seriously.

red onion - two sections look like a ballon character

This one, too, brought a laugh. Is he/she flaunting, with nose up in the air, looking at us out of the corner of his/her eye? It also gives off the feeling of one of those balloons that clowns make at parties, again, reminding us to REMEMBER to PLAY.

 

 

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