Desert Beauty

The beauty of the desert in spring is something to see.  'Spring' in Arizona is a varied word, and you never know what you're going to get in May.  We've had 100 degree weather, cool nights, cloudy skies, and tonight wind and rain and sunshine, which makes rainbows and sparkling diamonds and growth and dusky beauty and hope.

So last night I went out with my 100mm Macro lens and took a closer look at some of the desert beauty right before my very eyes.  My Mum (with her own years of experience and a "Which Cactus Is It?" book) helped me identify them all.

There were bougainvillea, in peach and raspberry-red...

Mexican Bird-of-Paradise, flaunting its bright orange and red colours (with one that looked to me like a colourful jellyfish)...

 

Seed pods from the Mexican Bird of Paradise, revealing small seeds ready to bloom forth...

Seed pods from the mesquite tree...

And an entire variety of cacti, some of which we couldn't even clearly define what they were.  We found those from the Cereus variety (the same family from which the noble saguaro comes)...

Cholla cactus, definitely a favourite, in bloom with deep reddish-mauve blossoms...

 

...and my most favourite of all, the Prickly Pear.  There were three varieties I spotted, one in dusty green with the fruit about to blossom, and empty places where the fruit had just been (you can have prickly pear jam, sweets, and even margaritas, and I highly recommend them all)...

  

 

...two varieties in glorious purple, with spines that extend beyond the 'paddles' themselves...

 

...and another that was more subtle. 

And above it all was a sky that looked like this.

Within minutes it had turned slate grey and the rain was pouring down, but by then I was safely inside, watching the desert rejoice and blossom as the rose.

It made me think of this verse from Isaiah 35:

"The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;
The desert shall rejoice and blossom like the rose.
It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and singing...
Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.
Say to those who have an anxious heart,
'Be strong! Fear not! Your God...will come and save you."

If you have a moment, I'd encourage you to read it all in context. It is truly beautiful - and you know how I love beauty.

A Royal Wedding

This morning I got up at 4am to fly down to London for the Royal Wedding. I had debated long with myself about going - I've got a lot on and it would make busy things busier - but the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to go, simply to stand there in a flag-waving crowd and join in the cheers as a nation celebrated a fairytale wedding.

First, I'm a wedding photographer. Any wedding thrills me, right down to the detail, and a wedding of this magnificence is heavy on detail and beauty.

Second, I'm an American citizen who just became a British citizen last year. I love the feeling of a national event, and I must admit, of a royal family. I know I come from America, whose founders fled these shores and rid themselves of royalty right quickly, but as Mike Cosper points out, it's not the idea of a king that bothers so much, it's the desire for a good king.  Even the Covenanters had no problem respecting the king; they simply recognised that he was subject to a greater King, and held him to account when he failed to remember that.

And that brings me, to, thirdly, the appeal of these two items together: a Royal Wedding. Because whether the general populus knows it or not, there is a Great Wedding, coming at 'the end of the age', and that will be between Christ and His church.

It did disappoint me a bit, earlier in the week as I read comments on blogs and Facebook and elsewhere, the number of people in this country who were pretty annoyed, frustrated, ticked off, or grumpy about this wedding. Yes, they have plenty to say about politics and government and royalty, but I felt (being a new citizen) that this is our country, and this is a national day of celebration. (Heck, we all got given the day off!)  I guess what is the hardest for me about the complaints is that they are about something that is so beautiful. I'm passionate about beauty. I see it, as this blog title indicates, everywhere. And on a day like this, with custom made gowns and ornate carriages and high church ceilings and marching guards, beauty is everywhere. It's positively sparkling.

 So it feels like a major crime to me to fail to celebrate beauty when it's truly there. People do the same with God and His beauty, too. He sends the sun, they find it too hot. The rain is too wet. The wind, the snow...last Christmas I saw sparkling diamonds everywhere, and many people around me only seemed to see an extra half hour's walk, and an inability to buy two loaves of bread even though their cupboards were full.  There are so many who insist on being grumpy and angry about anything in their lives. Whereas I insist upon seeing beauty everywhere, I insist on seeing God Himself.  Not always easy (and I most certainly get it wrong myself at times). But oh, what beauty is there to be seen, if only you will open your eyes!

So yes, there is a Greater Wedding coming one day. There will be many lining the streets. The Bible says that the great city, the 'new Jerusalem', will be 'adorned as a bride for her husband'. (What a view we got of that today.) And there will also be the haters. Many who say, 'He is no King', and 'We should (or can) rule ourselves'.  They not only refuse to enter into the joy, but they can't.  And I saw that today. Those who were grumpy or frustrated about the wedding didn't go - and those who were excited formed the whole crowd of flag-waving, cheering, happy, friendly, joyful citizens who enjoyed the day from start to finish.

Including me. 

Spring Is Here!

There are many indications that spring has arrived.  It's one of my favourite things, to be dandering down a street, perhaps in a bit of a gloomy mood, or tired from traveling, and suddenly I look up and there before me is a tree in full bloom, the first one I've seen so far, and it brings hope to my heart and renewed energy and enthusiasm to my life. 

So I thought I'd share some of this year's spring displays with you.

The snowdrops at Blair Castle, dripping wet from the falling snow....

Fragile pink blossoms at the Edinburgh Zoo, amongst barren trees and brown bushes...

 
At Bothwell Castle in Scotland, a plethora of green and an inkling of pink...

In London, amidst starkly-outlined buildings of grey and blue, a thin and even spindly tree stands tall amongst the modernity, reminding passers-by of beauty, and grace, and a Creator; beauty, right down to the smallest blossom.

And in Amsterdam, a riotous display of colour in these cheerful yellow things...I'm no good at flower names, but I know beauty and cheer and joy and hope when I see it.  And having just come out of the Van Gogh museum, learning about a man who fought the darkness his whole life, who painted many things but chose to paint sunflowers three different times, with three different backgrounds, this abundance of yellow lit up my world for just a moment.

May these expressions of spring light up your world with a little beauty, too. 

And go out there and take it in. 

Wearin' O' The Green

In honour of St Patrick's Day, I hereby present to you a variety of representations of the colour green.

First, from my home country, I bring you the green of Scotland, found in the grounds of Bothwell Castle, and bearing the hope of spring...

...Raindrops on snowdrops at Blair Castle...

...and a drink called a Highland Mojito which is made with green limes and green mint (and a beautiful amber liqueur called Atholl Brose).

From my own hometown this winter, the green traffic lights, which compared to these other greens appears more of a pale bluish green...

From Cyprus, the dusty sage and forest greens from the grounds of the Kourion Theatre....

From Bali, the brilliant greens of the rice fields.  There's something so peaceful about these, I could have stood there and looked at them all day. 

From Australia, the vibrant green shared with just as intense reds, oranges, and purples...

...as well as the turquoise of the sea-water-swimming pool in Sydney.

But finally, we get to the green greens of Ireland. Here are the woods in Killarney County Park...

 ...and the depths of Granny's Castle near Waterford.

 

Finally, though, we close with a genuine (Northern) Irishman, wearing green...

 

 ...and the pile o' gold at the end of the rainbow.  It may be green in America, but here it's gold!

May the road rise up to meet you!