Happy Earth Day/“Innocence”

         I hope everyone has enjoyed a lovely Easter weekend with friends, family, loved ones and/or doing something they love! And a Happy Earth Day, and not to mention that Easter Sunday was also John Muir’s Birthday (April 21st) AND Saturday began National Parks Week which runs through Sunday April 28th, wow what a time of the season!  

         As you read this, I myself will be doing something that has become kind of a Spring rite of passage for myself to honor National Parks Week and Earth day. I will be backpacking for a couple days in Shenandoah National Park! :-)  I am giving up Easter with family and missing my beautiful girlfriend, Anna, unfortunately this year. But as life has been a whirlwind for weeks now, I felt very strongly about getting out and re-connecting with Nature for a few days. And I think timing is going to be incredible this year as weather has really been coordinating with Mother Nature to produce a gorgeous steady progression of Spring blossoms here in the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic!

         I will have more on my Shenandoah adventure and what it means to me when I return. But for now, i will leave you to appreciate perhaps my favorite Spring photograph to date, “Innocence”. This is not from Shenandoah, but rather from another ritual I have every Spring which is visiting my Dad and the wonderful woods along the ridge where he lives. They are abundant with Redbuds, Dogwoods and Cherry Blossoms, making Spring bloom time prime time😁 

         The year I photographed this image, things were happening unusually early in the season, the Redbuds were popping late March into early April, about 2-4 weeks ahead of a more normal blooming period. But I happened to be there on such a perfect day. And in the glorious sunlight of mid-morning I stood staring up and around at a sea of pink and purple popping out amongst the dots of bright green and a crystal clear blue sky that I can only describe as heavenly. How innocent it all looks is what I remember thinking to myself. So fresh and pure and new. Bright eyed and bushy tailed, a true symbol of the rejuvenation of spirit this season brings!

IMG_4964.JPEG

“Innocence”   -   Brandon Kline

“Rise and Shine”

         It’s officially Springtime, belated Vernal Equinox greetings! Though for many of us there could still be some downright cold and blustery conditions for a few weeks yet, there is no denying the turn of the tides. More day than night, inevitable warmer temperatures will creep in and nature will rejuvenate itself!

         Rejuvenate has long been one of my favorite words to describe the Spring season. I feel it perfectly encompasses the excitement and energy of the growing strength of the Sun, the milder air, and the buds and blooms that will begin to abound in just a matter of time!

         It is truly delightful witnessing this re-birth and feeling the rejuvenation of spirit along with Mother Nature. As with all cycles of the Seasons, I try my best to be present in and appreciate this miraculous return of life as fleeting is the fragile beauty of these flowers and before our eyes the forests will be lush and green again. I am starting to witness very subtle signs in the region I live - birds are returning and becoming ever more vocal and tiny buds are growing on the early bloomers. Yes, a matter of time before the first flowers emerge and signal it is time to “Rise and Shine”!

IMG_4783.JPEG

“Rise and Shine” - Brandon Kline

Time to "Rise Up"...

         A few posts ago, I had mentioned how informative and inspirational a recent Sierra Club event I had attended was.  Two weekends ago, I also attended another Sierra Club sponsored event, the Banff Mountain Film Festival.  For those of you who love outdoor adventure of any sort and have never seen any of these films on tour, I HIGHLY recommend it! They are full of humor, inspiration, courageousness, and all around awesomeness!!!  And again this coming weekend, Saturday April 29th, is a BIG one folks.  The People's Climate March!

         I am not going to get all political, at least at this moment, but if you value anything on God's Green Earth, I strongly feel this is one of the most important assemblies of our current times.  It's no secret that their are some climate change deniers and anti-environmentalists in Washington D.C. right now.  And I feel it is EXTREMELY important to get involved in this if at all humanly possible.  Aside from the main march in Washington, there are sister marches all over the country that you can attend to help make your voice heard for the Planet.  For instance, I will be attending the gathering here in State College, PA.  You can find any information you need through the Sierra Club's website, www.sierraclub.org.

         Despite many uncertainties in our country and around the world right now, I have seen and been involved in several instances over the past few months that have given me tremendous hope!  There are people, not just "highly influential," but "ordinary, everyday" people, if you will, who are out there getting involved and making a difference!  Sometimes, it can be hard to see in the beginning, but things play out for certain reasons.  And perhaps all that is happening right now is exactly what we needed to "Rise Up" for the Planet, like the Spring rises from the Earth, and make a stand for this beautiful place we call home.

                                                                                                           Brandon Kline

"Rise Up"

A belated Happy Earth Day and National Parks Week!!!

         Greetings everyone,

         First, I hope you all have had a wonderful weekend and Earth Day celebration on Saturday!  Also, this past week(Saturday April 15th-April 22nd) was National Parks Week, which always coincides with Earth Day.  It is sometimes referred to as Earth Week and April is also referred to as Earth Month.  And one last coincidence with it all is the Birthday of the great Naturalist, John Muir on April 21st.  Whew, as you can see, it's a special time of year for Nature! And what a beautiful time, as in the Northern Hemisphere at least, the Earth is greening up again.  Storms bring the life giving rain, and mixed with the warming angle of the Sun - sights, scents, and sounds abound!

         Although I was not able to make any big excursions this past week, I was able to enjoy the growing beauty while I worked outside and did make a visit to a special place I look forward to every Spring, my Father's woods, and absorbed an absolutely lovely evening taking in the bounty of Redbuds glowing purple everywhere you look and the hint of Dogwood opening in their midst!  As for Earth Day itself, I made a visit to some old friends to lend support in a time of sorrow, yet peace.  And then spent the evening watching two of my favorite kids, getting them outside for pre and post dinner strolls, pointing out the flowers and trees in bloom, the sound of the Spring peepers, the scent of Lilac and Hyacinth, and the constellation Leo in the bright starry night.  They had a blast, and it felt so amazing to see their excitement and wonder!  A good Earth Day indeed. :-)

                                                                                                        Brandon Kline

The Sweet Songs of Spring...

         Perhaps when you look at this image, despite the pretty flowering trees dispersed throughout, it just seems like a big mess.  That's ok, sometimes I feel that way too.  In fact, I debated a lot over making this photograph part of my collection.  After several views though and transporting myself back to this moment in a place I treasure every Spring, it hit me.  The very reason I composed the scene the way I did was to encompass everything I could in the frame about this place that is special to me this time of year.  

         Picture yourself sitting peacefully in this tangled mess of forest bursting with new life, it is a beautiful Spring morning with the perfect mixture of a warm sun and a cool breeze.  Vibrant green surrounds you, such as the leaves of this young Sugar Maple hanging right in front of you, destined to be a majestic Autumn dazzler someday.  As you look all around, purple and pink dots of the Redbuds are everywhere, entrancing you with happiness.  And front and center, growing just enough year after year to work it's way into this clear open view, is the White Flowering Dogwood, brilliant as can be.  Unable to resist smiling with the joy of this re-birth of the forest, you just sit there and take it all in, the air filled with the sweetest scents of lilac and fresh flowers wafting in the breeze and the morning chorus of the birds rejoicing these sweet songs of Spring!

                                                                                                                   Brandon Kline

"Sweet Songs of Spring"

A sense of hope...

          Good Monday everyone,

          Over this past week, I've observed a lot happening in nature and weather here in central Pennsylvania.  I've been working with a Landscaping company doing Spring cleanup and mulching for some money before going into the Art Festival season.  The work has been good, hard, you know you've done something at the end of day type of work and it's been wonderful to be outside!  The first few days of crisp, damp mornings and gorgeous sunshine were followed by a dramatic cool down and some good soaking rain and even snow showers throughout Friday morning!  Luckily the temps did not drop far enough below freezing to do any damage to the early bloomers and now in the midst of several days of warm sunny weather ahead again, I think by week's end we are going to be seeing quite a noticeable change in the landscape! 

         Spring is well thought of as a time of renewal, hope, new life.  Two of my favorite words to describe it for sometime have been rejuvenation and innocence.  There truly is nothing like witnessing the grass green back up, the flowering trees and shrubs showing off their colorful blooms, and the tiny dots of the freshest, most vibrant green of the trees throughout the forests and mountainsides!  And our minds and bodies seem to Spring forth with nature, bounding with energy from the Winter slumber. This rejuvenation of spirit throughout nature makes me think of the pure innocence of a child, everything in the world gleaming and wondrously new.

         On that note, I feel a positive energy and sense of hope in what I am seeing, the things that are happening all around. I will be elaborating more on this soon, but for today, I leave you with this - this week, take note of the wonder in the smells of the Earth, the rain, the sunshine, the blooms.  Soon, the trees will be bursting with life, and one of my favorites, the Eastern Redbud, will be showing off its "Innocence"...

                                                                                                                Brandon Kline

 

"Innocence"