View allAll Photos Tagged Understanding
Taken on July 9, 2025 at 3:29:04 p.m.
With heartfelt and genuine thanks for your kind visit. Have a beautiful day, be well, keep your eyes open, appreciate the beauty surrounding you, enjoy creating, stay safe, and laugh often! ❤️❤️❤️
Understanding my roll.
When our first grandchild was born, my son’s family was stationed at NAS Pax River Maryland. We made the drive from Indiana to Maryland as often as possible and they the reverse. August was a beautiful baby boy who looked and acted like every other baby…like a little humanoid who had lots of intake and the smelliest of outgo. When it comes to babies…until they are old enough and can be responsible for their own head and neck, well let’s just say that holding one makes me as nervous as being wrapped up like a mummy utilizing live Boa constrictors! Scratch that as it is an exaggeration…I would prefer the boa’s!
I do not remember his exact age but I would guess it was around a year and a half old and they were in town for a visit. It was a beautiful spring/summer day and August and I were walking around the front yard, just exploring and enjoying time together. As we walked hand in hand, we came upon a bush. I have no idea what type of bush it was, even though it was part of our landscaping. It was both yellow and green, the type that looked a bit sharp but wasn’t.
We stopped and were looking at the bush when August without a word spoken looked up into my eyes. Instantly I knew his question and I said “You can touch it.” He gently reached out and started feeling the texture of a single branch, and smiled. It was at that exact moment, as if hit by lightning, that I felt like a grandfather for the first time…accepting responsibility for one of my roles in his life, to assist with discovery.
Fast forward seven years and I am at Custer SP photographing bison when I notice this little one. Its nose was inches from the ground and a few feet away from a lone blue flower. It moved from side to side, eyed fixed on the flower as if it was wondering what it was…a bit curious, a bit hesitant. A few seconds passed before it worked up the courage to approach the flower. When it bowed down to ascertain its fragrance, I took this photo.
Watching this bison reminded me of the thrill, the absolute blessing of discovery…making this shot a personal favorite from this trip!
Photo taken 22 May, 2023.
I am sorry I am 2 days late, but feel that it is better to post late than never.
World Water Day 2024
YouTube
Environmental Management Authority
Mar 23, 2024
www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=2024...
United Nations World Water Day
www.unwater.org/our-work/world-water-day?__cf_chl_tk=.QKt...
With heartfelt and genuine thanks for your kind visit. Have a wonderful and beautiful day, be well, keep your eyes open, appreciate the beauty surrounding you, enjoy creating, stay safe and laugh often! ❤️❤️❤️
True belonging is not passive. It's not the belonging that comes with just joining a group. It's not fitting in or pretending or selling out because it's safer. It's a practice that requires us to be vulnerable, get uncomfortable, and learn how to be present with people without sacrificing who we are.
Dr. Brené Brown
Belongingness entails an unwavering commitment to not simply tolerating and respecting difference, but to ensuring that all people are welcome and feel that they belong.
John A. Powell
Today, if we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
Mother Theresa, Saint Teresa of Calcutta
The most important thing in all human relationships is conversation, but people don't talk anymore, they don't sit down to talk and listen. They go to the cinema, watch television, listen to the radio, read books, update their status on the internet, but they almost never talk. If we want to change the world, we have to go back to a time when warriors would gather around a fire and tell stories
Paulo Coelho
We live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It's easy to say, ‘It's not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem.’ Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes.
Fred Rogers
Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.
Winston Churchill
When we choose to wonder about people we don’t know, when we imagine their lives and listen for their stories, we begin to expand the circle of those we see as part of us.
Valarie Kaur
We must remain hopeful that a universal ethic of courage, caring, sharing, respect, radical compassion, and love will make a difference. We can never be too generous or too kind.
Marc Bekoff
I believe that we are here for each other, not against each other. Everything comes from an understanding that you are a gift in my life — whoever you are, whatever our differences.
John Denver
With heartfelt and genuine thanks for your kind visit. Have a beautiful day, be well, keep your eyes open, appreciate the beauty surrounding you, enjoy creating, and stay safe! ❤️❤️❤️
With heartfelt and genuine thanks for your kind visit. Have a beautiful day, be well, keep your eyes open, appreciate the beauty surrounding you, enjoy creating, stay safe, and laugh often! ❤️❤️❤️
This image is of a logging road near the town of Fernie, British Columbia, Canada.
I post his image as a homage to the power and majesty of raw nature. As I hiked this road, I was surrounded by old forest, some red cedars hundreds of years old. I carried bear spray, understanding to whom this land really belongs.
I felt alone and not. Being immersed in nature allowed me to "live in the moment." Worries and negative thoughts were banished. Peace and hope prevailed.
[j]ust as the myths still live on in ghostly life as fables after they have died as real meaning, so the old rhythmic consciousness of Nature (it should rather be called participation than a consciousness) lives on as the tradition of metrical form. We can only understand the origin of metre by going back to the ages when men were conscious, not merely in their heads, but in the beating of their hearts and the pulsing of their blood—when thinking was not merely of Nature, but was Nature herself.
-Owen Barfield, Poetic Diction, 157.
I think that's this is all we need now.
For all my flickr friends, all the best for you and your families in these days. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
"As I walk through
This wicked world
Searchin' for light in the darkness of insanity.
I ask myself
Is all hope lost?
Is there only pain and hatred, and misery?
And each time I feel like this inside,
There's one thing I wanna know:
What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?.."
Elvis Costello & The Attractions: youtu.be/Ssd3U_zicAI?si=Bpr6eXy-MTRBEyCJ
Lacul Morii-Bucharest city-Konica 40mm F1,8
Not the brand or technique is important in photographic art, but the understanding of the things behind the photographed subjects, the emotion, the composition, the joy or the sadness, the life itself that is mysteriously coming unrepeatable as a gift.
(Horia Stanicel)
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.
C.S. Lewis
On New Year's Eve the whole world celebrates the fact that a date changes. Let us celebrate the dates on which we change the world.
Akilnathan Logeswaran
With heartfelt and genuine thanks for your kind visit. Have a wonderful and beautiful day, be well, keep your eyes open, appreciate the beauty surrounding you, enjoy creating, stay safe and laugh often! ❤️❤️❤️
Understanding light and dark using an apple iPhone. Walking through the back alleys of Edinburgh, SCOTLAND. Photowalk with Apple, Edinburgh.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7
You have to be able to afford a Porsche and not necessarily park between piles of scrap metal.
Seen in the old town centre of Wetzlar
Immature Red-tailed Hawk, De Pere, Wisconsin USA.
from my archive - June 2011.
This is a bird in the wild that had not yet fledged. He was a rescue of sorts - read more about it here: A Memory of the Fallen One
While this bird and I had a mutual understanding at the time, I cannot help thinking he is looking at me like he can't believe I would be so stupid as to enter the danger zone of his only defense.
EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lens. On-camera flash for fill.
explored 02-09-2023
The Hydrangeas did very well this year, although in general the heads are smaller probably due to the hot summer.
Now some have been dried and form a lovely dash of colour in the room.
Hydrangea, the name, comes from the Greek words "hydro" or water, and "angeion," or vase = water vase, they prefer a lot of water.
A very ancient plant, found in fossils going back thousands of years.
Flower lovers will know that there is a flower language.
Every sentiment is expressed in one form or another by delicate blooms.
Of course, even the experts disagree on the "true meaning" of many flowers and most have different meanings to different people.
So, while all flowers convey thoughtfulness and love, a gift of flowers for a special someone will always create its own personal meaning, too.
HYDRANGEA - Thank You for Understanding.
Have a wonderful day and thank you for your comments with all my heart, M, (*_*)
For more: www.indigo2photography.com
IT IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN (BY LAW!!!) TO USE ANY OF MY image or TEXT on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved
Hydrangea, bloom, blue, flower, vase, leaves, studio, black-background, colour, square, "Nikon D7000", "Magda Indigo"
A bit of a miracle getting so close to this species as they are extremely shy and wary. Normally they spot you and hide. However, on passage migration they appear to be much more confiding. They are usually found on desolate moorland and mountain sides but on passage migration they have been recorded on the coast and even in peoples gardens. They will stay if you have berries!
www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/b...
Slightly smaller and slimmer than a blackbird - male ring ouzels are particularly distinctive with their black plumage with a pale wing panel and striking white breast band. The ring ouzel is primarily a bird of the uplands, where it breeds mainly in steep sided valleys, crags and gullies, from near sea level in the far north of Scotland up to 1,200m in the Cairngorms.
Breeding begins in mid-April and continues through to mid-July, with two broods common, and nests are located on or close to the ground in vegetation (typically in heather), in a crevice, or rarely in a tree. The young are fed a diet consisting mainly of earthworms and beetles.
Overview
Latin name
Turdus torquatus
Family
Chats and thrushes (Turdidae)
Where to see them
Ring ouzels can be found in upland areas of Scotland, northern England, north west Wales and Dartmoor. When on spring and autumn migration they may be seen away from their breeding areas, often on the east and south coasts of the UK where they favour short grassy areas.
When to see them
Ring ouzels arrive in March and April and leave again in September.
What they eat
Insects and berries
UK Breeding:-
6,200-7,500 pairs
Conservation
22 July 2011
The first national survey in 1999 estimated the UK ring ouzel population at 6,157-7,549 pairs, with further range contractions and a likely 58 per cent decline in population size since 1988-91.
Recent studies aimed at understanding these declines suggest that low first-year, and possibly adult, survival may be the main demographic mechanisms driving the population decline. The large population decline qualifies the ring ouzel for inclusion on the red list of birds of conservation concern.
With all that's been going on these past few weeks, I hadn't had the chance to spend time with my fam like I'd like to. They've very understanding and supportive which I absolutely LOVE them for. I was able to go see my newborn grandbabies! And omgoodness I've fallen in love! Along with seeing my gbbies, my son Noah, my son Kole, and bbg Nyobi sent me some VDay gifts. My babies know me. Roses are my 2nd fav flower next to lillies. Giggles. I really have the best kids and gbbabies, ggbbabies and godbabies on the grid. I love each and every one of them. Thank you again for making this day so special for me. ♥♥♥
One day, may we all meet together
in the light of understanding.
(Malcolm X)
Smile on Saturday! :-) - LIT by CANDLELIGHT
(photo by Freya, edit by me)
Thanks for views, faves and comments!
I took my myself down to the mouth of Loch Lomond for the last days of summer, lots of people enjoying the Loch late in the evening. You can see the side of Ben Lomond. Have a great weekend.
Oh, Great Spirit who dwells in the sky,
Lead us to the path of peace and understanding.
Let all of us live together as brothers and sisters.
Our lives are so short here,
Walking upon Mother Earth's surface.
Let our eyes be opened to all the blessings you have given us.
Please hear my prayers, Oh, Great Spirit.
The best of fotovilag.hu
Thank you for visiting. The images in this photostream are the work of a group of photographers not a single person. They have no admin access to the site therefore they are unable to respond to comments or requests. Thank you for your understanding.
To return to Eckhart’s Sermon 24, the friar preaches not only of the birth of the Word in Bethlehem but of the Word’s birth in eternity and in the soul. All three at once: a divine birth for every aspect of human life. Regarding the birth of the Word in the soul, and this includes each and every one of us, “It is the peculiar characteristic of this birth that it always brings forth new light. It constantly introduces a strong light in the soul with light so much that the light gathers in the being and ground of the soul and spills over into the faculties and the outer self. This happened to Paul too when God bathed him in his light” (Acts 9: 3). 12 Eckhart continues, “The ground of the soul, however, is touched only by this and the more you are free of yourself, the more you shall find light, truth, and understanding.”
-An Ocean of Light Contemplation, Transformation, and Liberation, Martin Laird, O.S.A.
"Time spent in nature is the most cost-effective and powerful way to counteract the burnout and sort of depression that we feel when we sit in front of a computer all day." -- Richard Louv
“The future will belong to the nature-smart—those individuals, families, businesses, and political leaders who develop a deeper understanding of the transformative power of the natural world and who balance the virtual with the real. The more high-tech we become, the more nature we need.” -- Richard Louv
© Leanne Boulton, All Rights Reserved
Some kind of landscape photography I think. Captured in April 2023 at Troon South Beach, Scotland.
There are 3 vital things that someone with severe CPTSD needs in order to function and heal.
1/ Consistency, predictability and routine.
2/ A place of safety and comfort
3/ Patience and compassion
Without these my trauma response is activated. I can't help that, it is physiological.
These needs have not been fully met for the past 2 years or so. Is it any wonder my symptoms have worsened? Now I am blamed for not healing fast enough. 25 years of abuse and PTSD cannot be fixed with 1 year of therapy and just one year of healing afterwards, least of all when those needs are not fully met. I didn't stand a chance.
Last night a friend from the past messaged me at a critical time. They chatted with me online for some 2 hours or more. They actually made me cry, smile and even laugh. It saved The Samaritans a call and that friend may have saved my life. The timing was impeccable.
The biggest threat to me is not having the 3 vital things. Without those I will spiral into hell. There is no chance I can heal without them. I just don't know where I can get them now. I can't do this alone and I will need actual in-person physical help as well. At my worst I am unable to even cook a meal or even answer the door. At times I could not even leave the house into the garden.
At my best there are little nuggets of the old 'Leanne' there. I just can't find her by myself. I am too ill to do it all alone now.
For the friend that contacted me last night. I am in their debt.
I am trying to post to Flickr and enjoy your photography to maintain routine. It has helped to hold me together for a long time. I am struggling to comment on other people's work or find 'happy' photographs to share. I hope I can get back there though.
In the meantime. Thank you for your understanding and caring. However remote, it does help. It does help.
Understanding the causes
of being and beings
is a task without end
Het doorzien van de
achtergrond van het zijn
en de wezens
is een taak zonder einde
Etching, aquatint, image 15x9 cm, paper 21x24 cm
(c) Drager Meurtant, 2019
Here is a young Barn Owl emerging from a tree nest a few miles from my home in the West Yorkshire Pennines. The altitude was 200m (c650 feet) above sea level which is relevant as Barn Owls are primarily a lowland owl as they are not good at surviving where there is prolonged snow-cover, like the uplands. So Barn Owls usually only appear on the high ground after a run of mild winters Historically Barn Owls could survive snow by feeding on rats and mice inside barns. But rodenticides and grain silos mean the food isn't as plentiful so their chance of survival in a snowy winter is less. I looked at the populations of the British owls on the BTO website www.bto.org/understanding-birds/birdfacts/find-a-species and it surprised me. Tawny is the commonest with 50,000 pairs with Barn Owl second at 9000 pairs. Perhaps the next commonest will surprise many as it is Long-eared Owl with 3900 with Little Owl close on its heels with 3600 pairs. Little Owl also surprised me as I expected it to be commoner than Barn Owl as it certainly is near me. Finally comes Short-eared Owl with a quoted population of 1410 pairs. But Short-eared is almost totally dependent on Short-tailed Voles as prey, which have population cycles. So in boom vole years Short-eared Owls can be common while after bust years they are rare.
John Ray wrote the first proper bird book in the English language in 1678 (though he published the same work in Latin two years earlier). There were earlier books that referenced birds, often with a more general natural history theme, but Ray's was the first devoted to birds. In this first bird book Ray gave three names to this species; "The common Barn-Owl, or White-Owl, or Church-Owl". So one name referred to its unique owl colour, and two referred to its habitat preferences. Interestingly Ray gave the name "Ivy-Owl" as an alternative to our Tawny Owl, and I usually find them roosting in Ivy. The next major work on birds was Thomas Pennant in 1768, though it was a more general work on Zoology. Pennant coined the term warbler used for so many of our birds, and he often led the way for the selection of the accepted British name. But Pennant backed the wrong horse in this instance and chose White Owl. Later authors were reluctant to lose Barn Owl and often kept both names, such as William Yarrell in 1843. He listed both names but in his text showed a clear preference for Barn Owl, and the BOU officially adopted Barn Owl in 1883. So that is why a bird that nests freely in holes in trees, nest boxes on posts, and a variety of old buildings, has become linked to barns. Before I leave the names, the name Screech Owl was widely used and pre-dates Ray as it was first used in 1593. And Barn Owl does indeed screech. Have a listen on xeno-canto: www.xeno-canto.org/604167 , but the name Screech Owl has been adopted for different species of owl in America.
© Reza Ghasemi
Nature is an art created by God while its understanding is an art formed by humankind.
Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have.
Make the Now the primary focus of your life.
Eckhart Tolle
Please do not add me as a contact without commenting or faving my photos. A non commenting contact is not what I desire. I will not follow a 'non commenter' and will delete contacts who don't comment. If you add me as a contact please feel free to make any thoughtful comment you wish. Faving a photo will be considered a comment. Thanks for understanding, sharing thoughts and ideas is what I would like to get out of flickr.
For me, a hike without a destination to set my tripod down is just a walk. Among my favorite destinations in the mountains of North Carolina are waterfalls, all of which I’ve explored serving as my own pack mule lugging – er, I mean hiking – a backpack full of camera gear to location. I do this so that I can hike back with an image or two worth keeping… madness, but I do recommend it! I’ve tried to get Joyce to do the pack mule thing, to no avail. So, I changed the job description to the much more accommodating and benevolent Sherpa. Joyce says, “Thanks, but no thanks.” I say, “Those cancel out.” She ends it, “You get the point.” And I do. The ones and zeros of a digital image are absolutely weightless… the equipment used to capture them, however, not so much. Understanding that full well, one realizes that the life of a Sherpa builds character, a sense of accomplishment, and muscles. It’s all about knowing that the only one standing in your way is yourself… and occasionally a mountain, and sweat, and aches, and pains. Did I mention character?
We stayed in a nice house last week in Seven Devils, while Joyce attended the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, where she is the convener for the House of Boyd, essentially a Scottish clan. After getting her set up on the grounds and hanging around for the ‘gathering of the clans’, I’ve had my fill of men in kilts for the duration and favor getting lost in the mountains with my camera. Folks there ask, “But aren’t you Scottish?”, to which I reply, “No, Bohemian…” Pointing to my blue jeans, “… and this is the tartan of my people.” All I can say is, that while I’m staying in Seven Devils, it’s known as Eight Devils.
Seven Devils is an attractive highland community, well-groomed and with lots of deer to gobble up the groomings. The name of the town supposedly comes from a native perspective on the area: the winter winds here sound like seven devils screaming in the night. Devils figure quite prominently in Cherokee lore. While driving to and from the house from Highway 105, we took note of the Otter Falls trail with a small parking lot. With the house ensconced in fog on the morning of day two, I decided it was a good time to visit Otter Falls. Getting down to the park, I found myself driving out from under the cloud that was hanging around the elevation of the house. No more fog, which would have been nice, but the overreaching cloud would work out just fine… and it did! It’s a steep hike down to the falls, though not very far at a little over a half mile, further with connecting loop trails… kudos to Seven Devils for maintaining such a great trail system to this little jewel. While not quite awe inspiring as the many more powerful falls in these mountains, the intimacy and seclusion here among the verdant moss-covered rocks make it stand out. It was worth the trip, though this image must have been a bit heavier than ones and zeros, as the gear took a bit more umph on the precipitous climb back up. Must be a hexadecimal (base 16) image... that sounds heavy. Character. Don’t forget character and just keep climbing.
Centennial 6936 is accompanied by the Rock Island Heritage locomotive on the head of the "City of Bureau Jct." Running as IAIS Train RRHMA 21, the special shoves into the Silvis Shop Complex at the end of the round trip off the IAIS Blue Island Sub. Engineer Steve Sandberg job briefs with IAIS personnel on the way past.
The weekend of September 20-21 marked the first mainline outing for equipment owned by Railroading Heritage of Midwest America in the form of two round trips; the "City of Wilton" on Saturday the 20th, which ran from Silvis to South Amana, IA and return, and today's trip the "City of Bureau Jct." from Silvis to Bureau, IL and back on Sunday the 21st. These specials were operated in conjunction with the Iowa Interstate Railroad over their trackage, and served as fundraisers benefiting non-profits like the Central States Steam Preservation Association, and Operation Lifesaver, Inc.
6936 is an EMD DDA40X, and is the the world's largest operating diesel locomotive. Part of a class of 47 locomotives built for Union Pacific between 1969 and 1971, they featured two separate diesel prime movers on one frame, for a total of 6,600 horsepower providing electricity for 8 traction motors across a pair of 4 axle trucks.
The first units built showed up in May 1969 just before UP's Golden Spike Ceremony 100th anniversary in Utah. Being numbered in the 6900's and their timely delivery led to their "Centennial" nickname. This unit was part of the second group built, arriving in January 1971, builder number 35510, frame number 7198-12. Railroaders on the UP once referred to them as "Big Jacks", a term that has since turned into a bit of a misnomer that refers to the respectable, but not nearly as large or powerful freight units that succeeded them in everyday service in the United States.
The engine made its last revenue run May 6, 1985, and was saved for special service by UP. After about 25 years pulling railfan excursions, assisting the operating steam locomotives, display events, Operation Lifesaver Specials, providing power for executive inspections, officer special trips, business trains, and additional company service, the locomotive was used sparingly after 2008 until 2016, and donated to the RRHMA by Union Pacific in late 2022 with several other pieces of historic equipment.
After 14 years, this was the locomotive's long-awaited return to the mainline leading a train, having pulled its last business train in 2011, pulling some of the same UP cars it once moved in heritage fleet service followed by former PRR P70 coaches provided by IAIS.
Railroading Heritage of Midwest America is a non-profit organization with a mission to promote public understanding of the history of railroading in the Midwest. RRHMA accomplishes this goal by preserving, restoring, operating, and interpreting historic locomotives and railcars.
RRHMA is based in Silvis, Illinois in the former Rock Island shop complex. Once home to a 45 stall roundhouse, backshop, office building, power house, water treatment plant, and storehouse. Construction started in 1903, and the site was the Rock's primary shop until the 1980 shutdown. Afterwards the site was sold to Chrome Crankshaft, which later passed to National Railway Equipment. In 2022, RRHMA purchased the complex from NRE. It is now home to UP 5511, UP 3985, UP 6936, IAIS 6988, ATSF 537, and numerous rolling stock, all in various stages of restoration.
I invite you join or donate to the RRHMA today at: www.rrhma.com
Locomotives: UP 6936, IAIS 513
9-21-25
Silvis, IL