A LETTER FROM JUNE 18th 2024:
Dear Friends,
A few weeks ago Roger wrote a blog for SeeingHappy titled, “Can we Create Awe?.” In the blog, Roger suggests that we can become more mindful of the beauty in our world by slowing down and paying attention to what we are looking at, and we can seek this out on a daily basis. James and Suzie Pawelski have just published a similar thought in Psychology Today. James and Suzie say that awe is everywhere and is for everyone—the spiritual and the secular alike.
Why, you ask, should we care about awe? Well, awe takes us out of ourselves and connects us to something larger than ourselves. It is good for us. It helps our connection to others, it makes us kinder and more altruistic, it makes us more creative. It fights anxiety and depression.
James and Suzie have the following tips for experiencing more awe in your life:
• Reframe what awe is. We often encounter awe in our daily lives but don’t realize or notice it. Take time to slow down and reflect to see all the beauty and awe around us. Practice being childlike by bringing an open mind and a sense of wonder into your life and the lives of others.
• Go for “awe walks” in nature. Stop overscheduling yourself and racing from deadline to deadline. Allow for spontaneity and imagination. Build in time for mindful “awe walks” in nature allowing your mind to wander and dream. The default network, which leads to creativity and epiphanic moments, is most active when we are in a restful state.
• Inspire and be inspired. Build healthy connections and a strong sense of community. Remember that awe happens more with others than by ourselves, and that we find it more in the actions of ordinary people, rather than idols. It’s not so much looking inward but, rather, outward at the world around us. Connect with others on a daily basis who are focused on doing good in the world. Observe the best of what we can be and feel inspired by others.
Sounds like Roger’s advice: Slow down, go for a walk and pay attention. But Roger also goes on to say sometimes he was not able to capture the moment in a single snap. In fact he went back to his camera to “look beneath” what he was seeing. He ended up photographing the light in various stunning ways.
Under the Surface by ROGER IRWIN. April, 2024.
Roger’s experience reflects my own experience and I wanted to share that with you. My love affair with photography began really when a friend gifted me a macro lens for my camera. All of a sudden the world looked different. I was enchanted by what I saw through the viewfinder – mystery, beauty, and awe all entwined in a piece of sea glass or a sliver of ice. My world from that day forward has been both small and expansive – filled with awe for nature’s beauty all around me.
I recently started a project using extenders on my macro lens to capture crystals up close. The depth of focus is literally paper thin. I want to share these with you because these images make me very happy. I hope you will enjoy them also.
Take a moment and take your own close up. You can easily and cheaply get a macro attachment for a smart phone – I urge you to try it out. You will be amazed at what you see.
REFERENCES:
3 Simple Ways to Make Every Day Extraordinary by Suzie Pileggi Pawelski, MAPP and James Pawelski, Ph.D. via Psychology Today
