Words in the week: Nature in May #2

Because the rain across Wyoming is so very refreshing...

"Let the rain kiss you.  Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops.  Let the rain sing you a lullaby."  ~Langston Hughes

"Birds sing after a storm; why shouldn't people feel as free to delight in whatever remains to them?"  ~ Rose Kennedy 

 "It is not light that we need, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder.  We need the storm, the whirlwind and the earthquake." ~Fredrick Douglas

Foto Friday: Boar's Tusk, Red Desert in Wyoming

Words in the Week: Nature in May

The calendar says it is May, and yet large flakes of snow keep falling out my window.  On days like today I begin to get that itch to be in the outdoors for a hike on an unknown-at least to me-trail, a drive down a rocky mountain road exploring the landscape, or day floating down a river in anticipation of what I might see around the river bend.  In these instances I enjoy reading about nature- whether it be in the mountains, the desert, the ocean or the plains- and the insights and experiences that others have while being there. 

Since it may be awhile yet before I can get to some of the places I love due to snow pack and quick changing weather, the month of May Words in the Week will focus on nature- the beauty of it and our relationship with it.

"Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.        ~John Ruskin

"He is richest who is content with the least, for content is the wealth of nature.  ~Socrates 

"I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order.  ~John Burroughs 

Finds in the week: Artist Cai Guo-Qiang

In the April 2013 edition of Smithsonian Magazine, Ron Rosenbaum wrote about his interview with the artist Cai Guo-Qiang in his article entitled "Burning Man".

Born in China, Cai Guo-Qiang now lives in the US and displays his art around the world.  His medium: explosives.  Some of his art that may be familiar to most people is the display of explosions he created for the opening of the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

The interview with Cai Guo-Qiang is fascinating as Rosenbaum discovers the deeper meaning for the artists  choice in medium and his art by learning about his childhood, his father's life, and his own hope for eyes, beyond just the Earth, to view his art.  Rosenbaum describes Cia Quo-Qiang's art as: "Violence transformed into ethereal beauty."

Visit Cai Guo-Qiang's website for photos of his fascinating projects and read the article "Burning Man" by clicking on the links.

Foto Friday: To be a kid again...