Finding Solace on the Shores of Lonesome Lake
Has my sister really left us here on this remote shoreline? How can that be? Why would she? She just left for a moment, she’ll be back shortly, right? She can’t have done so knowingly. She can’t have envisioned her path with us would end here. She can’t have wanted others to feel this lost.…
Tropical Metropolis
This image is 100% real and not AI generated. It seems strange to have to make that claim, but this is the reality in which we live. The lines between fact and fiction are increasingly blurred and challenging to discern. The distinction between the artificial and natural objects in this photograph though should be obvious.…
Masterful Craftsmanship of Gitksan Totem Carvers
This totem pole is installed at the Seneca Park Zoo. The sign beside it reads in part: “Walter Harris and Art Sterrit, both of the Gitksan Nation in British Columbia, Canada, came to Rochester to carve this totem pole by hand. For one month, they worked with gouges, handmade knives and chisels. They used a…
Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage: The Wampanoag Story
It’s probably no coincidence that the U.S. recognizes November as both Native American Heritage Month and the annual celebration of Thanksgiving. After all, we were brought up with stories of the Pilgrim’s first Thanksgiving shared in harmony with a welcoming of Indigenous Peoples from the region. Though much of this romanticized depiction has since been…
The Surreal Impact of Beauty: Discover Frisson
The Scenario A graduate school philosophy professor presented me with a scenario based on aesthetic theory. He suggested that someone could be rendered virtually paralyzed in the presence of pure beauty. That you could become overwhelmed with awe to the point that you could not function normally. Your primary feelings could overload your rational thoughts,…
Flowing Through Life: A Dance of Generations
Conceived in heavens From amorphous vapor Condensate Of a single droplet Begins atomic expansion Precipitating out A tear from the void Splashing down Following gravity’s pull Toward the unavoidable Rolling along Inexplicably nudged Picking up momentum Gathering steam Babbling incessantly With the stream Passing through bends Shaping them or us Roiling over At the unexpected…
Swallowtail & Wisteria
Yellow tigers step lightly Like children chasing the surf With graceful playful motions Atop sprays of mauve blossoms Riding fragrant waves to shore Velvet nectar splashes and crashes Tumbling over tails and toes Nearly swallowing them whole Before springing into flight Words and images by Michael J. Hall
Li’l Red Eft
Well, way up north where the air gets coldThere’s a tale about Christmas that you’ve never been toldAnd a real famous newt all dressed up in redAnd he spends the whole year peelin’ out of his shed It’s the li’l red eftOoh, li’l red eftIt’s the li’l red eftOoh, li’l red eft AhhhhhhOoooooooMerry Christmas Spotted…
Cedar Serpent
Before we had begun our trek through the trail of cedar, we had heard rumors and myths of an ancient monster that ruled these forested hills. Some described it as a giant gnarly serpent, while others recounted something like that of a lanky angular dragon. We had been warned to “leave no trace” of our…
Korean Lilac
Dreamy and intoxicating is the aroma of these Korean lilacs in full bloom – one can almost smell the heady fragrance from the mere image…can’t you? Words and images by Michael J. Hall
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