by
Mark William Darus.
Your shrieking alarm greets you, most annoyingly, as you leave a peaceful place, perhaps crushing the sweetest of dreams with the deafening tones of DU-DU-DU-DU!!!!
On autopilot, with well trained muscle memory, you reach out and hit the extension button to silence it for 15 minutes as you drift back to the gentle Otherworld of Half-Sleep. With closed eyes, contented limbs you wander around there a bit.
DU-DU-DU-DU-DU!!!!!
You cut off the alarm, at times grabbing it and sending it flying across your bedroom like swatting a bothersome mosquito. If breaking another clock, I have annihilated many, you may curse your weakness for doing so. Fret not, you've kept others working by making us more Dream-Crushers, ie alarm clocks. See the upside?
You get dressed while either playing music to fire up your morn or watching the latest bad news shown on CNN, FOX or avenues. Drinking coffee, tea or chugging a Pepsi Zero while you eat something to fuel your engine, you leave your dwelling while continuously wiping sleepers from your eyes.
Grey NorthEastern Ohio clouds paint a backdrop for your day as you enter your vehicle. Perhaps you wonder if you are stuck in an endless loop of living monotony. More robotic 5 days a week, governed by such ritual that life takes form of a series of reruns that runs, echoing on forever, forever, forevvvvvverrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
Well, think of your eyes as cameras, your ears as recorders, and most important of all: give yourself the time to feel what you encounter instead of numbing it, belittling it, dismissing it as so many of us do in our rush to work, shop, cooking dinner, whatever. Take a moment of pause, relax, (and why is it so many of us can no longer just relax during a work week? To pass a few seconds in our lives to just give thanks for gifts given them?" That's easy: Most do not allow themselves the downtime to just reflect on anything other than the demands of chores being laundry, cooking, cleaning, making payments, sex with The One, soccer practice, ballet practice, yoga, Me-Time and my personal favorite: "Look, man. I just don't time for such fanciful bullshit!"
There is Treasure Hiding for all of us to see. So, without further ado, allow me to present you a few things I have seen while going to and/or leaving work, shopping with photography,
Do these two not look so much like the stoic black and whites on a Cracker Barrel wall from early days of photography? Love this capture as their background looks like a heart.
Layers of colours from ribbing blades. Made me wonder who placed a single seed to soil and wonder what they were thinking about while doing so.
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Sooooo, Eighties, yet true: Discount Drug Mart saves you the run around, you'll find everything you neeeeeeeeeed! When I caught this while editing, besides laughing my butt off for the insight, I stepped, hit my keyboard to youtube and played the BeeGees! Oh, Yeah!!!! :)
Happened on this one while on a stretch with Gretch. We found it on a park bench, (and why does this make me think of Jethro Tull's Aqualung?)
This shot from December 2013 on my way to work.
Taken on Scranton Rd, Cleveland Ohio USA. So many avenues in our lives are NOT A THRU STREET. I think a belief in Jesus can help with this issue...
This little critter was atop my BlailTrazer a few days before I got canned at Progressive. I got a many shot of this dude as I had not seen any in many years. Awesome!!!!
Edgewater Beach as fall clouds rolled in. I went there before work about two years, lost myself while doing so. Took about a hundred images.
Lake Issac, Ohio. Granted, not focused. I have never seen so many DragonFlies in my life before stopping there before doing a ten hour day at work. I, more often than not, was lucky catching this.
After getting my days wake up coffee of a Dark Roast at the Speedway on Bagley and I-71, I normally awaken about 2pm, so as many of you think about ending your work day, I have yet to begin mine, I walked out with my 15 year aging, yet trusted, battered, and true 30 oz Goshen Dairy mug in hand. I looked up and saw this. I sincerely hope your Savior is as revealing as mine in your Walk. I sincerely believe all I do with a camera is focus, set shutter speed and such menial task. I am thankful Jesus guided me toward this.
Defiant SnowMan on a Spring day.
Innocent child on an Easter Egg hunt maybe three years ago.
Amish Country Ohio. I was so in awe when I reviewed the several hundred shots I took that day and found this one. Knowing I was merely a button pusher, feeling blasted out of the water when I saw this digital capture. I can only thank Jesus for showing me this, graciously giving me an ability to share it with others.
My eldest Daughter, Rachel a couple of years back. No flash used. I seriously dislike flash photography as to me, is just not real to the eye. Little blur at such a slow shutter speed. a God send truly so.
FEED ME, MOMMA!!! a babe in nest beckons full throttle. I got this one just walking about. Yeah, just something I do, and am grateful for spending time while the sun and I coincide.
JESUS GIFT ALERT!!!! View this shot from a tree ripped apart by lightening strike. What do you see as unique, precious, and amazing? Yeah, I have witnessed many a Cloud Painter gift (and always take their images into my heart and give praise, but this was my first Sculpture capture.
My message to you: Go Off-Trail and see what there is to see. Please mind poison ivy when you do with wearing sandals and shorts.
Caught at Steelyard Commons. These fires from a company know known as Acelor Mittal Steel not a United States based company, but from somewhere in India. (I am certain I screwed that company name quite bad.) Oh Well. Got this image shooting its firestacks for EPA requirements. I titled this: God of HellFire! My dearest Lord, you give me so much to see, take into my life, and freely share with others. Could this be, (and I so freely blasphemy here, I not knowing your will or plan, ask this: Did you give me a glimpse at corporate greed? Okay, maybe I got windy on that, yet perhaps not....
Hey, you think your street is potholed? Really?!?!
I love my Nikon P520 and my former P510 that passed a bit ago. No Tripod used when taking our Memory-Moon. (as a geologist pointed out to me: Mark, all life on this planet, be it dinosaurs, fish, plant life see the Moon as we do now. -C Clement. He's right.
I wish and charge you to see and take into your life something different than your last day. Each and every day we are given is a chance to learn and grow.
I love all of you.
MWD.
