Up the Sunbeam

-- In a jubilant rush from the steep slopes of Mount Sir Donald and the glaciers in the surrounding crown of peaks, come the spectacular liquid jade waters of the Illecillewaet River and Asulkan Brook in my beloved British Columbia.  The two rushing flows come together in a veritable cacophony of sparkle and sound at a place picturesquely called "The Meeting of the Waters." It is a place of contrasts, at once ancient and permanent as well as endlessly new and changing, both a crashing cymbal and a love-tender lullaby. It is a place both exhilarating and hypnotic, thrilling and stilling, wild and loud and boisterous while simultaneously a place of deep peace and heart-quiet. I have a feeling I could spend many months there with terabytes of memory cards and still not capture all its moods and secrets and longings. I perpetually frame pictures, no matter where I am or what I'm doing.  On a bright September day I looked around this magical place, and true to ...

-- Hero Husband and I have something of a City Mouse-Country Mouse dynamic to our relationship and because of the difference in our backgrounds, we have learned to give each other room for our differing needs and preferences. Several years ago on a trip to Lake Tahoe, what my city boy most needed was quiet relaxation in the hotel, and what I desperately needed was mountain air and unhurried time with my camera. Selfless love enabled us each to give the other what they needed--I happily wished him a good time as he rested and relaxed in the hotel, and he gave me the freedom to go to the mountains for the day. I know he wasn't completely thrilled with the idea of me out traipsing around in the wilderness by myself, but he understood my deep need to replenish my reserves of serenity that can get so depleted by living in the city (well, the suburbs, but it feels like city by comparison to where I grew up). I took my camera and left early, excited to explore some nearby trails and wa...

In Sausalito, CA there is an artist named Bill Dan who works with rocks in a very unique way. As this picture shows, he balances groups of rocks in formations that seem to defy gravity. In fact, the first time I saw his sculptures standing on the shore of San Francisco Bay like frozen sentries, I was sure there was some kind of wire or glue involved. As if he could hear what I was thinking, he turned to one of his creations and just nonchalantly took it apart, tossing the rocks into the pile, turning them back into ordinary rocks again. Moments later, he began a new stack and I was completely transfixed as I watched him work. He held each stone carefully like he was listening to something he alone could hear. He would position stone upon stone, making almost imperceptible adjustments until suddenly he would just remove his hands and as if by magic the rocks stood still. Despite appearances, it is not magic, but his understanding of physical laws that allow this wonderful artist to...