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There's no greater mystery behind the power of positive thinking.If we assume before the fact that we can't accomplish something, we almost certainly won't. If we believe that we can, we are much more likely to succeed. At least we'll make the effort.
We talk ourselves out of interesting opportunities all the time - when we ought to be talking ourselves INTO them.
San Miniato al Monte is a basilica in Florence, central Italy, standing atop one of the highest points in the city. It has been described as one of the finest Romanesque structures in Tuscany and one of the most scenic churches in Italy. There is an adjoining Olivetan monastery, seen to the right of the basilica when ascending the stairs.
St. Miniato or Minas was an Armenian prince serving in the Roman army under Emperor Decius. He was denounced as a Christian after becoming a hermit and was brought before the Emperor who was camped outside the gates of Florence. The Emperor ordered him to be thrown to beasts in the Amphitheatre where a panther was called upon him but refused to devour him. Beheaded in the presence of the Emperor, he is alleged to have picked up his head, crossed the Arno and walked up the hill of Mons Fiorentinus to his hermitage. A shrine was later erected at this spot and there was a chapel there by the 8th century. Construction of the present church was begun in 1013 by Bishop Alibrando and it was endowed by the Emperor Henry II. The adjoining monastery began as a Benedictine community, then passed to the Cluniacs and then in 1373 to the Olivetans, who still run it. The monks make famous liqueurs, honey and herbal teas, which they sell from a shop next to the church.
The interior exhibits the early feature of a choir raised on a platform above the large crypt. It has changed little since it was first built. The patterned pavement dates from 1207. The centre of the nave is dominated by the beautiful freestanding Cappella del Crocefisso (Chapel of the Crucifix), designed by Michelozzo in 1448. It originally housed the miraculous crucifix now in Santa Trìnita and is decorated with panels long thought to be painted by Agnolo Gaddi. The terracotta decoration of the vault is by Luca della Robbia.
The crypt is the oldest part of the church and the high altar supposedly contains the bones of St Minias himself (although there is evidence that these were removed to Metz before the church was even built). In the vaults are frescoes by Taddeo Gaddi.
The raised choir and presbytery contain a magnificent Romanesque pulpit and screen made in 1207. The apse is dominated by a great mosaic of Christ between the Virgin and St Minias on its vaulted ceiling dating from 1297; the same subject is depicted on the façade of the church and is probably by the same unknown artist. The crucifix above the high altar is attributed to Luca della Robbia. The sacristy is decorated with a great fresco cycle on the Life of St Benedict by Spinello Aretino (1387).
Craig Neopolitan Wu
Photo taken at B.D. Rhodes
Photographer Brian Lescher-Rhodes
Editor Brian Lescher-Rhodes
Featured at this years Rock your Rack Event
(Festival finished in world, for more information please click below)
You can't protect the people you love from everything.....
but you can hold them in your arms and say that you would like to 🌹💋💖
... both me and the other passenger
On the way home in the tram, gazing out of the window,
window reflection, candid portrait. This image also documents my efforts of doing street photography and retaining the anonymity of the person photographed. Single exposure, in LR b/w conversion and increased blacks.
Hey you - Pink Floyd
I fell into a state...
A state of suspended animation
As my eyes closed and dreamed
Light trickled in momentarily
Through the portal of time
Where my thoughts drifted in and out
There...twilight and night were the same
As were the days
Intermingling in the dreams
My visions moved in and out
Wishing, hoping...and then more dreaming
Of all the things within me
Suspended...waiting...
For that one touch...
For that one moment of liquid sun
To pierce the sky
And bring me back to that one place
Where I want to be...
(lfa)
The fresh wind that caresses your skin, the light of the full moon, the sound of the waves and many thoughts..
Featuring: CKEY Poses - Pablo series1, ! Lowe - Glitter Blush Set & Derdieb / Icebreaker
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This is another photo from my Rosolina archive. It was the first and only time I have been at Rosolina Mare (Rosolina by the Sea; see my What a meaningful world... for information about that peculiar location), but I have been lucky enough to have two wonderful low tide sunrise sessions there. And apparently my archive from this location has some more suprises in store, somehow (sadly) compensating for the very small trickle of new shots.
I was on my way home after my second session, after having hiked some 23 km. The sun was high by then, and I did not like the light - lots of diffuse light, the clouds acting like a reflective screen - and I was a bit weary. So I folded my tripod and took a number of shots while walking, maybe a bit casually, convinced that the big shots were behind my back. But well, one can never be sure... This is one of those casual shots. Two years later I have been struck by the rhythm of the sand ripples and by the stunning sky reflected by the still water of the tidal pool, and how they blend together. Since the ripples in the sand somehow resemble the surface of a naked brain, I have come to think of these reflections as thoughts the sand has of the wide, cloudy sky above (hence the funny title of this photo).
The curvature of the horizon is, of course, generated by my Samyang 14 mm and I feel that it is one of the defining features of this scene.
I have obtained this picture by blending a "fake" (i.e. from a single RAW file) exposure bracketing [-1.0/0/+1.0 EV] by luminosity masks in the Gimp (EXIF data, as usual, refer to the "normal exposure" shot).
This shot opened up so many possibilities that I was quite uncertain; I have a more than slight preference for the monochrome version and, consequently, I have posted one of many subtly different experiments, but the colour one is not that bad - maybe I could upload it as well, someday...