September Equinox

Happy autumnal equinox/first day of fall to those in the Northern Hemisphere and vernal equinox/first day of spring to those in the Southern Hemisphere!! It's a special day in regards to the Earth-Sun relationship:

On the September equinox (approximately September 22, but varies slightly from year to year), the vertical rays of the Sun will strike directly (perpendicular) at the equator. On any other day throughout the year, the axis of the Earth is tilted a little towards or away from the sun.  Also, the circle of illumination (the dividing line between the daylight half of the Earth and nighttime half of the Earth) touches both poles, bisecting all other parallels. Thus, day and night are of equal length at all locations on Earth (approximately 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness). The word "equinox" comes from the Latin language - "equi" meaning "equal", and "nox" meaning "night" -  "the time of equal days and equal nights."

“Autumn is a reminder that while the leaves die and fall, there will always be Spring, a chance to replenish and be reborn again. We all have the opportunity to replenish ourselves, to be reborn.”

~ Tao 

"Autumn asks that we prepare for the future —that we be wise in the ways of garnering and keeping. But it also asks that we learn to let go—to acknowledge the beauty of sparseness."

~ Bonaro W. Overstreet

Tea Tag - September 15

Confusion

“Any confusion you experience has within it the essence of wisdom automatically. So as soon as you detect confusion, it is the beginning of some kind of message. At least you are able to see your confusion, which is very hard. Ordinarily people do not see their confusion at all, so by recognizing your confusion, you are already at quite an advanced level. So you shouldn’t feel bad about that; you should feel good about it.”

~ Chögyam Trungpa

I hope you are right, Trungpa, and if so, I should be at an expert level by now!

expression of the universe

You are the universe, expressing itself as a human for a little while.

~ Eckhart Tolle

In the darkness - Isabelle Lake/Pawnee Pass

08/28/2013 - Hike at Brainard

The day may not have been "nice" nor the weather "perfect."  It was rainy, dark, the trail slippery, muddy, skies overcast, the forests shadowed. Yet, it all encompassed its own beauty...beauty in the darkness and in the shadows. 

It is a necessity for things to be balanced in nature. While extremes are tolerable for a time, balance is eventually necessary, it helps all life thrive, not just survive. The same can be said of us. Nature has to be dark and destructive at times in order to exist. As such, we have to get through the dark days to enjoy the bright ones...both of which are magnificent in their own unique ways. 

Below are some images from the hike that I thought captured the beauty of the day

:-)

Tea Tag 8/1 - The Unknown

 

When  you are in tune with the unknown, the known is peaceful. 

This has become my favorite thus far...

Hiking - Diamond Lake

Midnight and I headed through Boulder, up Boulder Canyon, past Nederland and up to Eldora. Just beyond Eldora, the paved road ends, and if you keep following the road all the way up, you come to the "4th of July" trail head; named such because the snow doesn't melt and the trails aren't generally passable until around the 4th of July. Within the Indian Peaks mountain range, I find this one of the most beautiful places I have ever hiked. The wildflowers are spectacular, as are the waterfalls. It is always amazingly green (for Colorado) and the skies always so blue. The air so fresh and it never gets hot up there. It was a perfect day. Since this was Midnight's first time there, I took him to my favorite waterfall. It is definitely one of my favorite places on Earth.

To see the water traverse down the mountain side is remarkable to me. It is the lifeblood of the Earth. Snow melt from the Colorado alpine provides much of the water in the state. It continuously flows through Indian Peaks all summer, nourishing plants and flowers along the way. There is nothing more beautiful. Especially against the barren, rocky landscape in the near distance.

We then hiked beyond Diamond Lake and came upon another beautiful alpine lake that was completely stunning. I had never been there before and we were blessed by the fact that no one else was there. The beauty there was magnificent and absolutely breathtaking.

In all honestly, if I didn't have places like that to go, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. Nature=Shonna's God,  period. Aside from music, it keeps me in check and keeps me sane. For some reason, it is only there that I can find clarity in thought, true clarity. When there, I try to let everything go, in a meditative way. It's not easy, but that mountain range, and many others in Colorado have an energy to them that I can't even explain in words, most notably in the alpine region. It brings me an inner peace that nothing else does. It helps me see and understand things more vividly and clearly. It speaks to me in a way that nothing else can.

Watching the billowing clouds form and head east, seeing the lush green grass, colorful wild flowers and flowing waterfalls...what a miracle that something so beautiful  can even exist. Whatever force or power that created this place is truly remarkable...and this is just a minuscule piece of the wider Universe.

Entertaining and humorous side note: I like hiking to the tops of waterfalls to see what they are flowing from. Midnight and I hiked up beyond the first waterfall and through some thick trees.

I carry bear spray on most hikes, not only for bears (which I have seen at Diamond Lake), but also for creepy people (you never know). Somehow, while walking through the trees, a branch pulled off the safety lock on the spray in my backpack's side pocket. I have no idea how that is even possible, but it happened, because as I walked through the trees, it hit me...burning my throat and eyes. It was crazy. I seriously do not know how the safety lock came undone and the trigger engaged. Actually, the more I think about it, it seems nearly impossible....hmmm. Anyway, somehow it happened. I threw all my shit down and ran out of the trees, let it air out and then turned around and headed the other way...Ha!

Contrast

Iowa - June, 2013

I've always been fascinated by the contrast of "light" and "darkness" within ourselves and within the universe.

Below are some of my favorite quotes by Carl Jung in regards to darkness, pain and chaos, none of which are bad; they give us the opportunity to evolve:

"Filling the conscious mind with ideal conceptions is a characteristic of Western theosophy, but not the confrontation with the shadow and the world of darkness. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious"

"Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better take things as they come along with patience and equanimity."

"There is no coming to consciousness without pain."

"In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order."

"Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble." 

"There can be no transforming of darkness into light and of apathy into movement without emotions."

"Man needs difficulties; they are necessary for health."

"We deem those happy who from the experience of life have learnt to bear its ills without being overcome by them."

Tea Tag - July 25

"Work, but don't forget to live"

Tea Tags

I thoroughly enjoy tea, and good quotes/inspirations. So, I've started photographing the Yogi tea tags that inspire and resonate with me most. More to come!

"Feel good, be good and do good." 

The Earth needs people who feel good and do good. Our time is short here, it is important to do these things and exactly in that order. One must feel good in order to be good and to do good.