[Art is] contemplative because [it] ignites memories of the awe and wonder that we tend to discard after childhood. . . . When we decide to live in our heads only, we become isolated from the God who is closer than our next breath. To subject everything to rational analysis reduces the awe to ashes.Continue reading “day 16”
Tag Archives: attention
day 10
Sometimes, gliding at night in a plane over New York City I have felt like some messenger called to enter, called to engage this field of light and darkness. A grandiose idea, born of flying. But underneath the grandiose idea is the thought that what I must engage after the plane has raged onto theContinue reading “day 10”
day 6
I could not predict the fullnessof the day. How it was enoughto stand alone without helpin the green yard at dawn. How two geese would spin outof the ochre sun opening my spine,curling my head up to the skyin an arc I took for granted. And the lilac bush by the redbrick wall flooding theContinue reading “day 6”
hallowing sight
(all images by Kate Kennington Steer) I ignore all the ridiculousness around Halloween, the dressing up, the tricks and treats, but I do quietly celebrate the three days of All Hallows, All Souls and All Saints. These days form the bridge from October to November, signalling the beginning of the end of Autumn light andContinue reading “hallowing sight”
standing still for solstice
(all images Kate Kennington Steer) I am drawn to light, of all kinds, in all shapes. I am pulled towards the symbols and manifestations of the Great Light. And yet, paradoxically, through chronic ill health, I am often dragged into the most shadowed places within. The darknesses of depression are a constant companion lurking notContinue reading “standing still for solstice”
advent apertures 2019: day 19
Sorrow everywhere. Slaughter everywhere. If babies are not starving someplace, they are starving somewhere else. With flies in their nostrils. But we enjoy our lives because that’s what God wants. Otherwise the mornings before summer dawn would not be made so fine. The Bengal tiger would not be fashioned so miraculously well. The poor womenContinue reading “advent apertures 2019: day 19”
advent apertures 2019: day 17
Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvellous error!— that a spring was breaking out in my heart. I said: Along which secret aqueduct, Oh water, are you coming to me, water of a new life that I have never drunk? Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvellous error!— that I had aContinue reading “advent apertures 2019: day 17”
advent apertures 2019: day 16
It has frequently been remarked, about my own writings, that I emphasize the notion of attention. This began simply enough: to see that the way the flicker flies is greatly different from the way the swallow plays in the golden air of summer. It was my pleasure to notice such things, it was a goodContinue reading “advent apertures 2019: day 16”
advent apertures 2019: day 7
Mercy, there have been revelations. Grace, there has been realisation. Still, you must travel the path of time and circumstance. The further you go, the more it comes back to paying attention. The rough skin of the tallowwood, the trade routes of the lorikeets, a sky lifting behind afternoon clouds. Staying close to theContinue reading “advent apertures 2019: day 7”
image into ikon 