Friday, September 4, 2009

An Artist's Play Day

I have been told that artists are "different", that we don't think the same as "normal" people, nor ,apparently, do we see things the same or even behave the same. I'm not really here to discuss other artists. I'm here to let you in on a little part of my world if you care to peek. You can judge for yourself if I see things differently!

Today I allowed myself some "play" time. It wasn't for very long, but it did allow me an opportunity to recharge a bit. I allowed myself some time to take my camera out in to nature and just let my "artist child" play. This, I am discovering, is a great way to foster creativity, to fill the well so to speak. I just allowed myself time to listen, watch, discover, explore and just tried to remember what it was like for me as a child when my greatest joy was to go out into my yard and pretend I was a naturalist observing and recording all the nature around me.

This is some of the natural world that caught my "artist childs" eye today.....
A viceroy butterfly was sunning itself in some thick vegetation near the water.
I found the back sides of these wild sunflowers to be quite beautiful with the sunlight shining through their petals. ( is this what is meant by artists seeing things differently??)This little chickadee had been feeding in the sunflowers, but retreated to the safety of the trees when Maggie barreled through the patch of flowers in hot pursuit of who knows what!I found this beautiful blue craw fish claw lying in the sand. I'm not sure what causes the blue color as craw fish are usually a burnt orange.



I was lucky enough to catch this osprey out looking for breakfast and got a few quick shots before it plunged into the river and came up with a nice fat fish. Unfortunately, I couldn't get to the rivers edge for all the brush so I didn't get any great shots of the catch. Oh well, maybe next time!

Growing right next to each other in a shady patch along the river were some vibrant blue elderberries and their color complement, these orange rose hips.

I enjoyed my little play date today and whether you are an artist or not I would encourage you to take some time, even if just for an hour, to go outside and remember what it was like to be a child again. Let your imagination run wild! Let the sun warm your face, let wet sand squish through your toes. Take some time to get close to the earth and see what wonders you can discover there. I guarantee you will feel much better for it!

Thanks for taking this little journey with me today! Enjoy yourself and be blessed!!