Deaf Pagan Crossroads

Posted in Archives #4 Pagan Thoughts and Writings, Art & Literature, Nature, Paganism, Photography, Poetry/Prose, Spirituality | 14 Comments

14 Responses to “Defining Paganism”

1. on Saturday April 14 2007 at ocean1025

   I have to confess… I am fascinated by the picture of the tree trunk in the second photograph. If you look carefully, it seems almost like there is an ancient old face there…standing guard to honor our sacred Earth. Makes me think a little of that tree character from the Lord of the Rings saga.

   Anyone else get that same feeling?

   
   
2. on Saturday April 14 2007 at deafpundit

   Wow. Can I buy the first picture? That is an AWESOME picture!

   
   
3. on Saturday April 14 2007 at crystaldolphin

   Funny, before I even got to the comments section, I got lost for a few moments staring at that tree trunk, thinking pretty much the same thing as you Sis (though what else is new)…I could almost make out the old, wise, face in the bark…watching over. Hmmm. I agree with DeafPundit about picture number one too - it is awesome.

   Great photography work Robin!

   
   
4. on Saturday April 14 2007 at sunflowerwoman

   Wow, I thought I saw a face, too, before I read the posts! It is an interesting tree. Does anyone know what kind it is? I’ve not seen that kind of bark on any trees around here…

   
   
5. on Saturday April 14 2007 at Willowstar

   Looks like it might be a shagbark hickory… they do look something like that. And yes, I was thinking the same thing about seeing a face in it!

   Beautiful pictures, Robin! Perhaps you could share a bit more about them with us? I’d love to know more about the origin of these photographs - where was the first picture taken? It reminds me a little of my trip to Ireland (yes, Osh… I know I’m making you jealous now!)

   
   
6. on Saturday April 14 2007 at LaRonda

   Yes, there is definitely a “green-man” face in the tree trunk. I loved the photos! I loved the brief descriptions beneath them too. It left me wanting more! Encore! Encore!

   ~ LaRonda
   http://www.earofmyheart.com

   
   
7. on Saturday April 14 2007 at Karen Mayes

   That photo of the tree trunk reminds me of the talking trees in the 2nd movie (Two Towers)

   I love the first photo, it calls to my Celtic blood… (my ancestors came from the Cork County, going by the name O’Brien… then everyone has a relative going by O’Brien, hee hee…there is a manor still there, which is converted to a hotel… from where my foremother was disinherited for getting pregnant by a boy from O’Dooling, the dirt-poor family. Both came to America… years before the Potato Famine.)

   I always sign with content when I see the grass turning green, one of the first signs of spring… nice sign of rebirth.

   
   
8. on Saturday April 14 2007 at Robin

   Thank you once again, Osh, for all the photo exposure.

   And thank you to everyone for your lovely compliments.

   A few notes about the photos:

   #1 was taken in the Lakes District of England. This was somewhere along a 10 mile hike my husband and I took which went up and down the fells (hills/mountains) and along the Ullswater (one of the lovely lakes the district is known for). A lot of the hiking took us through pastures of cattle or sheep and gates like this one, as well as stone walls, were a prominent feature. The Lakes District is a beautiful and quite magical area. I’d like to go back someday as we missed some of the things I had hoped to see (such as a stone circle) due to taking the wrong trail here and there. Most trails in the Lakes Districts, especially those that go high up into the fells, are not well marked. One can easily get lost.

   #2 was taken in southern Ohio (also known as Ohio Appalachia) in the Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area. We were hiking, approaching a large rock shelter, when I looked up and saw this tree. I saw the face immediately and thought it looked like an old Guardian of the Forest. It sounds silly but I asked the tree for permission to take the photo. The Old Guardian seemed agreeable and I managed to get this photograph on the first try. He does remind me of the Ents in Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films.

   #3 was taken on a hike in Pennsylvania, not far from the Lancaster County area (Amish country). I saw the mushrooms and thought they looked like a miniature forest and I imagined it as being inhabited by nature spirits of some kind. (I’ve been known to have a somewhat vivid and wild imagination.)

   When Osh asked me for photos so she could illustrate what Paganism is to her, I was unable to send the photos that immediately came to mind because they’re stored on my computer which I don’t have with me right now (I’m using my husband’s laptop). Thankfully I’ve uploaded a lot of photos to an online site where I could access them and after bombarding Osh with some of those photos, she decided on these three.

   Deafpundit: Email me at maidinsun@gmail.com if you’re interested in a print of that first photo.

   Thanks again, everyone! I’m glad you’re enjoying the photos. And thank you again, Osh. It’s nice to have someone put these photos to use.

   
   
9. on Saturday April 14 2007 at ocean1025

   Hey Karen…was that “sign” with content, or SIGH with content? A little “Fruedian Slip” there, perhaps?

   For those of you who enjoy Robin’s photography, I encourage you to check out her blog at Bountiful Healing - you will find the link in the sidebar menu under “Cuz I Like Em Blogs” She has some beautiful pictures up there, along with some nice prose.

   Just FYI… the photography is Robin’s, but the words that accompany them are my own. It’s my short and sweet answer when people ask me “what is Paganism?” I think the pictures help to clarify what I mean a little bit more, don’t you think?

   Robin has promised to come along in a bit and share some history about these photographs with us, so be sure to pop back in the Crossroads in a day or so and check this commentary section to see what she has to say! (oops, I see she beat me to it… )

   
   
10. on Saturday April 14 2007 at Robin

    We must have been typing at the same time, Osh.

    I meant to mention that as well: That the words are Osh’s. She sent me the words asking for some photos that might go with them. I still think I could’ve done better, Osh, with full access to all of my photos, but these worked out rather well.

    
    
11. on Saturday April 14 2007 at Karen Mayes

    Ha, ha… yeah, could be a “Freudian slip”… I meant sigh, not sign… ha…

    
    
12. on Saturday April 14 2007 at birch

    you know it dose look like an old man, neet pictures

    
    
13. on Saturday April 14 2007 at crystaldolphin

    Wow Robin, your background stories on these photos makes them all that much better! No, it certainly does not sound silly, especially to us Pagans, that you asked the tree for permission to photograph it. And I love your thoughts on the mushrooms picture.

    
    
14. on Sunday April 15 2007 at Wolf Wind

    Beautiful, beautiful pictures. I need to get back to Scotland and Ireland some day. I enjoyed the tree trunk with the mushrooms popping out of it. I have always been drawn to those type of pictures, don’t know why but I’ve never been disappointed yet-nor think I will ever be. Thank you for sharing them!