"Fallin' with Me" by Bodhi Smith

Mar 31, 2023

"fallin' with me" is my new beautiful impression taken a couple weeks ago on the tropical island of tahiti during my recent visit to french polynesia...
 
"falling, falling, falling, the crystal-clear water drops nearly 300feet from the mango tree-lines cliffs above into a refreshing aquamarine pool of water, beautifully reflecting vaimahutu waterfall's entire glory and grace like a mirror...and as an added bonus, early in the morning just as the tropical sun illuminates the entire cascade, a glowing rainbow forms across the bottom of the falls, creating an even more breathtaking sight to behold" ― bodhi, fallin with me
 
"like a 
waterfall 
destined for the 
waiting pool below, 
just 
fall. 
have faith in the 
fall. 
and keep 
falling, 
and 
falling,
and 
falling. 
trust in the 
fall, 
and in 
falling 
with me, we'll be 
raised up 
to the heavens" 
 
"you be my alice, and i'll be your mad hatter. we can live in a palace, nothing too amateur. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' with me?" ― the struts, fallin' with me.

"sometimes, wet is love. love that's falling free. free is the feeling i feel deep inside me. come and see that wet is me" ― barbra streisand, wet.
 
"sometimes, when you fall, you fly" ― neil gaiman, the sandman
 
"love, like a waterfall, flows through the heart...feel the thrill of falling, and say nothing" ― jalaluddin rumi, the music and silence of the heart
 
"in the delicate dance of the waterfall, falling free is the most wonderful thing" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
 
"fall...
fall in love.
fall out of love.
falling in love again.
falling out of love again.
fall a bit more again later on,
falling once more for someone new,
the special one who's falling with me"
 
released in 1989, this tune is deeply meaningful, it's lyrics are filled with years of regret, even though the freedom that was desired was found at the expense of happiness...posing the question: would you rather be free fallin' or fallin' in love? ... "free fallin" by tom petty & the heartbreakers. ... (just click on any of the words in the powder blue links to listen to the tune and watch the video) ... and here is an excellent acoustical cover done twenty years later in 2009 by john mayer: "free fallin" by john mayer (tom petty & the heartbreakers cover).

"she's a good girl, loves her mama, loves jesus and america too. she's a good girl, is crazy 'bout elvis, loves horses and her boyfriend too. and it's a long day livin' in reseda, there's a freeway runnin' through the yard. and i'm a bad boy, 'cause i don't even miss her. i'm a bad boy for breakin' her heart...and i'm free, free fallin'. yeah, i'm free, free fallin'...and all the vampires walkin' through the valley move west down ventura boulevard. and all the bad boys are standin' in the shadows, and the good girls are home with broken hearts. and i'm free, i'm free fallin'. yeah, i'm free, free fallin'. free fallin', now i'm free fallin', now i'm free fallin', now i'm free fallin'... now i wanna glide down over mulholland. i wanna write her name in the sky. i'm gonna free fall out into nothin'. gonna leave this world for awhile. and i'm free, free fallin', now i'm free fallin', now i'm free fallin', free fallin', now I'm free fallin'...yeah, i'm free, free fallin', now i'm free fallin'...yeah, i'm free, free fallin', free fallin', now i'm free." ― tom petty & the heartbreakers, free fallin'.
 
"words falling so softly from his lips with a meaning only she could hear and know, as he's whispering: like a wanting waterfall flowing into the river, i'm falling into you. in our union, i become part of you, forever" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
----------------------
 
MEANING
"you are my water and i fall for you" ― bodhi, falling with me
 
"falling" is an idiom defined by merriam-webster as:
1. become enamored. become infatuated. become smitten. be swept off your feet.
2. moving from a higher to a lower level, typically rapidly and without control
 
i just keep falling so in love more and more with tahiti, and "fallin' with me" is the fa'aruma'i stream...falling, falling, falling, the crystal-clear water drops nearly 300feet from the mango tree-lines cliffs above (a couple ripe mangos actually fell off the trees and dropped all the way down splashing into the pool below while i was shooting the waterfall) into a refreshing aquamarine pool of water, beautifully reflecting vaimahutu waterfall's entire glory and grace like a mirror...and as an added bonus, early in the morning just as the tropical sun illuminates the entire cascade, a glowing rainbow forms across the bottom of the falls, creating an even more breathtaking sight to behold...
 
measuring over 90m tall (297ft), vaimahutu falls is the largest waterfall of the three cascades of fa'aruma'i on a stream on the northeast side of the island of tahiti-nui (the other two cascades are haamarere-iti falls and haamarere-rahi falls)...it's also one of the tallest waterfalls in all of french polynesia...
 
these falls are also quiet easy to reach. they're only a short hike from the parking lot, of which is only a short distance off the main tahitian highway that circumnavigates the entire island  (and only about 30 minutes from the capital and largest city of pape'ete)...and by going in the morning bright and early, i had the place all to myself (something i always embrace with a smile) for a few hours at all three of the cascades...so beautiful and entrancing to watch a tall waterfall flow its path from top to bottom with only the roaring sound of the water to break the silence of the tropical forest...
 
"this is the wisdom the waterfall taught me: falling won't hurt you...fall with me and let's start falling in love" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
 
every waterfall sends a strong message, only if you are willing to listen and observe. they invite us to fall, inspiring everyone to never fear falling...because falling will not hurt us. a waterfall sends the message that falling is often necessary, illustrating that the path one must take in the course of their life is frequently a route requiring them to take a leap of faith, let go, and let yourself freely fall...waterfalls send us the message to be like them, to fall with them...
 
take this for what you will...i believe that the more we fall, the more we learn as we keep getting back up. falling gives us experiences in degrees of letting go. each fall is different, each fall teaches us something new which we need to know in order to best find the path we must go... 
 
"people who fall the hardest, bounce back the highest" ― nishan panwar
 
and our dreams about falling can also teach us lessons too. millions of people have dreams about falling, it is a common type of recurring dream. falling dreams are the most frequent among all the common dreams we experience in our lifetime. researchers say the average human will experience falling in a dream up to five times in their lives...
 
but these dreams don't need to be nightmares, if we only know how to look at them and understand better their deeper meaning to us...
 
"merrily falling, falling, falling, life is but a dream" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
 
dreams about falling with water bring our attention to our emotional state of mind. there could be a loss of control or unwillingly plunging into a part of yourself that makes you apprehensive...falling in water means that you are emotionally breaking down and need to address your problem asap...

falling in your dream could also suggest an ending to some chapter of your life. something where you might need to get to the bottom of things. maybe you feel that you might hit rock bottom in life, this could relate to your job or relationship. or it's possibly the need to feel more grounded and in touch with reality...
 
i embrace both dreams and actual times of falling, metaphorically and romantically...i've always loved falling in love...
 
"you know that beautiful pool at the bottom of a waterfall? that's you. deep, cool blue, enveloping, reflecting, constantly refreshing. i sink down into it, into you, i want to stay in your waters forever" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
 
and when i've fallen out of love, i've always reflected back to see all the beautiful experiences i got to share with another, and all the valuable lessons i learned from the relationship and having to move in a different direction and path divergent from them...and i'm looking for the next time in my life when i can fall for someone again. find that special soul i've known my whole life in my visions and dreams, but who i've yet to meet in person...find the girl who i fall for all over again, the one who also loves falling with me...
 
and this is the wisdom the waterfall taught me...
 
"fall in love. fall out of love. fall in love again. fall out of love again. fall a bit more again later. falling new for someone new, the one who's falling with me" ― bodhi, fallin' with me

this newest release from late 2022 by the alternative rock band the struts (who are from great britain but live in the united states) is the absolutely perfect song to go along with my impression and blog today. not only because it has the same exact title as my image here, but its lyrics go much deeper, carrying a spiritually parallel meaning for me in my life so far ... "fallin' with me" by the struts. ... (just click on any of the words in the powder blue links to listen to the tune and watch the video) ...

"oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh...you be my alice, and i'll be your mad hatter. we can live in a palace, nothing too amateur. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' for me? show me your talents, i'll throw them back at ya. no matter what happens, i'll keep up the temperature. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' for me? yes or no, let's go! you're coming with me, let's take a dive. meet at the rainbow, nine forty-five. wear something trashy, that's what i like. we're on the rooftop, jumpin' off the sides. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' (are you?), fallin' with me? oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh...the evil is landing through the roof on your tablе top. let's eat up some damagе, there goes my trail of thought. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' with me? (are you fallin' with me, babe?) yes or no, let's go! you're coming with me, let's take a dive. meet at the rainbow, nine forty-five. wear something trashy, that's what i like. we're on the rooftop, jumpin' off the sides. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' for me? oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, tell me, baby. oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, yeah, me through. oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, anyways...oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, woo! are you coming with me? let's take a dive, meet at the rainbow, nine forty-five (not a second later). wear something trashy, that's what i like (that's what i like). we're on the rooftop, jumpin' off the sides. are you fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa fallin' (woo!), fallin for me? tell me baby, fallin' with me...oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh" ― the struts, fallin' with me.
 
"there's a hushed beauty echoed in the melody of a waterfall, as waterdrops whisper to each other while they're falling together" ― bodhi, falling with me
----------------------
 
MORE BODHI QUOTES
and now here are a few more quotes from bodhi. from past blogs to help add to the deeper meaning of this blog today...
 
"the waterfall's ended for me. i'm now out of this picture's frame...where i am, you cannot see, only imagine. i've fallen out of sight below the falls, someplace where my river is only a calming positive flow...now i'm free flowing, loving life one day at a time, living life one moment at a time" ― bodhin, free flowing 
 
"perpetually i have thoughts of her flowing through me, visions of her sticking in my mind, free falling across all time and space in love" ― bodhi, free falling
 
"i'm aware of only one single undeniable truth about my being: that i am full of love...those things i love get every single drop of my passion, and when taken collectively, they create the waterfall that makes me live" ― bodhi, my waterfall
 
"i'm recharged by going out into nature and seeing water playfully creating nature's most beautiful moments, i'm lucky to be able to capture them for other to see and share, i'm lucky to have such a record of my beautiful memories of water, memories that make me live" ― bodhi, water
 
"love, like water, pacifies the soul, the spirit, and the body, take a sip of its life, and live again" ― bodhi, pacify
 
"there is something so peaceful and beautiful in the falling and entrancing movements of the waterfall, embracing gravity in a dance of love" ― bodhi, falling
 
"you do not have to be standing before an amazing waterfall, or at the edge of a beautiful canyon, or under a canopy of glowing stars in order to realize what a wonderful life you have...for, in every moment of your life the universe is whispering to you, just silence the noise and listen carefully to the wisdom" ― bodhi, listen to the whispers  
 
"listen to the wisdom of the waterfall: let things fall as they need to be, and flow where they need to go...fall into its rhythmic silence, and flow into its peaceful melody" ― bodhi, fall and flow
 
"water that's falling is free, it's free-flowing. water that's falling has no fear of falling. water that's falling runs its course. water that's falling has a clean clarity. water that's falling is always in motion and never stagnant...be like falling water, and live a life that's finds you falling freely" ― bodhi, falling water
 
"you're my waterfall music, i want to have your falling waters massage me in rhythm, cover every inch of me in melody" ― bodhi, waterfall music    
--------------------
 
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT TAHITI
"like a waterfall destined for the waiting pool below, just fall. have faith in the fall. and keep falling, and falling, and falling. trust in the fall, and in falling with me, we'll be raised up to the heavens" ― bodhi, falling with me

tahiti (previously also known as otaheite) is the largest island of the windward group of the society islands in french polynesia. it's located in the central part of the pacific ocean and the nearest major landmass is australia...the island of tahiti is divided into two parts, tahiti-nui (bigger, northwestern part) and tahiti-iti (smaller, southeastern part). the island was formed from volcanic activity; it is high and mountainous with surrounding coral reefs...
 
French Polynesia Flag.jpg
flag of french polynesia
 
tahiti's population is 189,517 making it by far the most populous island in french polynesia and accounting for 68.7% of its total population. tahiti-nui is most heavily populated along the coast, especially around the capital, papeʻete. the island is encircled by a main highway which cuts between the mountains and the sea, and it's in this zone that 95% of the population live. the interior of tahiti-nui is mountainous with dense tropical forests and is almost entirely uninhabited. the smaller tahiti-iti has remained isolated, except for teahupo'o (pronounced "choh-poo") where one of the largest and most famous waves in the world can be found on the barrier reef protecting the south shore of tahiti-iti. beyond there, the southeastern half of tahiti-iti (te pari) is accessible only to those travelling by boat or on foot.
 
tahiti is the highest and largest island in french polynesia. it's located 4,400 kilometres (2,376 nautical miles) south of hawaiʻi, 7,900 km (4,266 nmi) from chile, 5,700 km (3,078 nmi) from australia...the island is 45 km (28 mi) across at its widest point and covers an area of 1,045 km2 (403 sq mi). the highest peak is mont orohena (mouʻa ʻorohena) at 2,241 m (7,352 ft). mont ronui (mouʻa ronui) in the southeast rises to 1,332 m (4,370 ft). the island consists of two roughly round portions centered on volcanic mountains and connected by a short isthmus of taravao...tahiti's landscape features lush rainforests and many rivers and waterfalls, including the papenoʻo and the three cascades of fa'aruma'i on the north side and the fautaua falls near papeʻete...

tahiti is the economic, cultural and political centre of french polynesia, an overseas collectivity and an overseas country of the french republic. the capital of french polynesia, the city of papeʻete, is located on the northwest coast of tahiti. the only international airport in the region, faʻaʻa international airport, is on tahiti near papeʻete. tahiti was originally settled by polynesians between 300 and 800ad. they represent about 70% of the island's population, with the rest made up of europeans, chinese and those of mixed heritage. the island was part of the kingdom of tahiti until its annexation by france in 1880, when it was proclaimed a colony of france, and the inhabitants became french citizens.fFrench is the sole official language, although the tahitian language (reo tahiti) is also widely spoken...

november to april is the wet season, the wettest month of which is january with 340 millimetres (13 in) of rain in papeʻete. august is the driest with 48 millimetres (1.9 in)...the average temperature ranges between 21 and 31 °C (70 and 88 °F), with little seasonal variation. the lowest and highest temperatures recorded in papeʻete are 16 and 34 °C (61 and 93 °F), respectively...

economically, tahiti (as with the rest of french polynesia) is very dependent on the tourism industry making up over one third of its gdp...the main trading partners are metropolitan france for about 40% of imports and about 25% of exports. the other main trading partners are china, the u.s., south korea, and new zealand..

tahitian pearl (black pearl) farming is also a substantial source of revenues, most of the pearls being exported to japan, europe and the united states. tahiti also exports vanilla, fruits, flowers, monoi, fish, copra oil, and noni. tahiti is also home to a single winery, whose vineyards are located on the rangiroa atoll...unemployment affects about 15% of the active population, especially women and unqualified young people. tahiti's currency, the french pacific franc (cfp, also known as xpf), is approx. 113 CFP to the united States dollar...french polynesia imports its petroleum and has no local refinery or production....

mutiny on the bounty and tahiti
the infamous mutiny on the hms bounty historically happened in the french polynesia islands...on 26 october 1788, the hms bounty (h.m.s.= his majesty's ship) under the command of captain william bligh, landed in tahiti with the mission of carrying tahitian breadfruit trees to the caribbean. sir joseph banks, the botanist from james cook's first expedition, had concluded that this plant would be ideal to feed the african slaves working in the caribbean plantations at very little cost. the crew remained in tahiti for about five months, the time needed to transplant the seedlings of the trees...
 
in those 5 months in tahiti, the crew of the hms bounty got spoiled by all the beautiful weather, warm days and nights, the native women, plentiful food/spirits, and all the extra down time they had waiting for the seedlings to sprout. for many, living those 5 months in tahiti was the best time of their life. but they still had the responsibility of serving their king and the british navy as soldiers with a duty to fulfill and a mission to complete. once the breadfruit trees where all loaded and ready to be transported back to england's caribbean islands, the hms bounty once again set sail and left tahiti...
 
after much repetitive abuse from captain bligh concerning how his officers and crew had become soft and lazy, along with missing their easy living days in tahiti, many of the sailors were becoming discontented and rebellious. so three weeks after leaving tahiti, on 28 april 1789, the crew of the hms bounty mutinied on the initiative of first mate fletcher christian. the mutineers seized the ship and set captain bligh and his loyal crew members adrift in the ship's pinnace (a small open boat often used in emergencies and/or for smaller ship-to shore runs by crew members). but bligh managed to safely navigated the boat to a friendly port in june of 1789, saving himself and about half aboard. bligh promptly went about foreseeing the bringing of the mutineers to justice...bligh would serve out his career in the british naval and died in 1817
 
next there came the failed attempt by fletcher christian and the rest of the mutineers to successfully settle the polynesian island of tubuai to the south of tahiti from june 1789 to september of 1789, their efforts were denied by numerous hostile polynesian natives on the island...after their unsuccessful struggles on tubuai, in september 1789 a large group of 16 mutineers requested to return back to tahiti and settle there. the group thus split up, with 16 remaining in tahiti and christian and 9 others seeking a safe refuge to live elsewhere...
 
in september 1789, fletcher christian and his remaining crew (9 of his followers) took the hms bounty with 14 tahitian women and 9 tahitian men onboard, and sailed southeast across the desolate open waters of south pacific ocean trying to find pitcairn island. it had been reported by captain cook's expeditions in the area back in 1767, but the remote island's exact location was never verified. after months of searching and fearing the hms bounty might never land ashore on pitcairn and everyone aboard would all perish in the process, fletcher christian finally rediscovered the island on 15 january 1790. pitcairn had been unbelievably mischarted, being an astounding 188 nautical miles (348 km; 216 mi) east of its recorded position, which is 2300km (1435 mi) southeast of tahiti. but upon arrival, the island looked like an amazing tropical paradise with plenty of food, water, fertile land, and moderate tropical weather. this isolated, dreamy uninhabited island truly seemed the perfect paradise, and it was for a couple years for fletcher christian and the others...but it was simply not meant to be so, as it would not last...
 
meanwhile back in tahiti in 1791, the hms pandora under captain edward edwards (who was ordered by captain bligh and the british navy to find the mutineers at any cost), ported at tahiti and took custody of fourteen of the mutineers. unfortunately as fate would have it while taking the prisoners back to england, four mutineers were drowned in the sinking of hms pandora which crashed into australia's great barrier reef while on her homeward voyage...once captain edwards finally got back to england, three of the mutineers were hanged, four were acquitted, and three were pardoned...
 
even though captain bligh would never get his revenge on fletcher christian for the mutiny on the hms bounty and the british navy would never bring to justice any of the mutineers who fled with christian to pitcairn island, almost none of them would live long (except john adams)...looking like paradise on paper at first, however in real life, the island became a living hell because of the bad combination of people cooped up on a small island in the middle of nowhere trying to live together in harmony. resulting from this unsuitable mix, the situation on pitcairn deteriorated into death and chaos within three years because of infighting between the tahitians and bounty mutineers. by 1793 almost all of the mutineers would be dead, most unceremoniously murdered, including fletcher christian who would be survived by thursday october christian, the son he had with his tahitian wife isabella (along with four other children). 
 
by 1794, the lone surviving bounty mutineer, john adams was able to restore stability and peace to pitcairn and created a thriving christian-based island settlement that exists to this day. adams would die of natural causes in 1829. and he would be honoured as the founder and father of a community that became celebrated over the next century as an exemplar of victorian morality...
 
btw, all the modern day natives of pitcairn island are actual descendants of fletcher christian, adams, and the other hms bounty mutineers, and to this day many still live on pitcairn island...and the fate of the ship, the hms bounty? it was burned and sank in the main harbour on pitcairn (now called bounty bay)...

filmed in tahiti are the various films narrating this story of the 1789 mutiny on hms bounty – two of prominence are the mutiny on the bounty (1962) with academy award winning actor marlon brando, and the bounty (1984) with academy award winning actors anthony hopkins and mel gibson...
 
"you are the water i want to keep falling with, always and forever falling free" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
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MORE QUOTES FOR EXTRA MEANING
released in 2019, here is another song that goes along with my impression and blog today, this one is another tune about living with regret after falling deeply for someone, but then deciding to break it off and go separate ways...its beautiful lyrics helps to add some extra deeper meaning to my blog and impression here today... "falling" by harry styles. ... (just click on any of the words in the powder blue links to listen to the tune and watch the video) ...

"i'm in my bed and you're not here. and there's no one to blame but the drink in my wandering hands. forget what i said, it's not what i meant. and i can't take it back, i can't unpack the baggage you left. what am i now? what am i now? what if i'm someone i don't want around? i'm falling again, i'm falling again, i'm falling...what if i'm down? what if i'm out? what if i'm someone you won't talk about? i'm falling again, i'm falling again, i'm falling...you said you care, and you missed me too. and i'm well aware i write too many songs about you. and the coffee's out at the beachwood cafe, and it kills me because i know we've run out of things we can say...what am i now? what am i now? what if i'm someone i don't want around? i'm falling again, i'm falling again, i'm falling...what if i'm down? what if i'm out? what if i'm someone you won't talk about? i'm falling again, i'm falling again, i'm falling...and i get the feeling that you'll never need me again. what am i now? what am i now? what if you're someone i just want around? i'm falling again, i'm falling again, i'm falling. what if i'm down? what if i'm out? what if i'm someone you won't talk about? i'm falling again, i'm falling again, i'm falling" ― harry styles, falling.
 
"life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away" ― vicki corona, tahitian choreographies  
 
"the ever present river was the reminder of the ticking of time and distance that devoured the seconds in between. but oh, how he loved that echo of a heart that pounded against his body while a waterfall of feelings dropped into his veins. could he stay there always (he pondered), in that pool below where the calm flow of familiar warmth spread through him and his heart beat happily away in his chest? could there be a place for him among those waters? could it be the river that led him home, falling into his heart?" ― c.ara campbell, calm flow (modified by bodhi) 
 
"i have forgotten your voice, your happy voice;
i have forgotten your eyes.
like a flower to its perfume, i am bound to
my vague memory of you. i live with pain
that is like a wound; if you touch me, you will
make to me an irreparable harm.

your caresses enfold me, like climbing
vines on melancholy walls.

i have forgotten your love, yet i seem to
glimpse you in every window.

because of you, the heady perfumes of
spring pain me; because of you, i again
seek out the signs that precipitate desires:
shooting stars, waterfalls" 
 
"i can write the saddest poem of all tonight.
write, for instance: "the night is full of stars,
and the stars, blue, shiver in the distance."
the night wind whirls in the sky and sings.
i can write the saddest poem of all tonight.
i loved her, and sometimes she loved me too.
on nights like this, i held her in my arms.
i kissed her so many times under the infinite sky.
she loved me, sometimes i loved her.
how could i not have loved her large, still eyes?
i can write the saddest poem of all tonight.
to think i don't have her. to feel that i've lost her.
to hear the immense night, more immense without her.
and the poem falls to the soul as dew to grass.
what does it matter that my love couldn't keep her.
the night is full of stars and she is not with me.
that's all. far away, someone sings. far away.
my soul is lost without her.
as if to bring her near, my eyes search for her.
my heart searches for her and she is not with me.
the same night that whitens the same trees.
we, we who were, we are the same no longer.
i no longer love her, true, but how much i loved her.
my voice searched the wind to touch her ear.
someone else's. she will be someone else's. as she once
belonged to my kisses.
her voice, her light body. her infinite eyes.
i no longer love her, true, but perhaps i love her.
love is so short and oblivion so long.
because on nights like this i held her in my arms,
my soul is lost without her.
although this may be the last pain she causes me,
and this may be the last poem i write for her.
 
"when something on the outside fits with your inner image, you fall in love...that's the meaning of love" ― osho, book of wisdom
 
"it's not that you fall in love with a beautiful person; the process is just the opposite. when you fall in love with some person, the person looks beautiful. it's love that brings the idea of beauty in, not vice versa" ― osho, intelligence
 
"in the future...if by some miracle you ever find yourself in the position to fall in love again...fall in love with me" ― colleen hoover, it ends with us
 
"the secret of life is to fall seven times and to get up eight times" ― paulo coelho, the alchemist
 
"water that never moves--it's fine for a little while. you can drink from it and it'll sustain you. but if it sits too long, it goes bad. it grows stale. i need waves. i need waterfalls. i want rushing currents" ― tahereh mafi, ignite me
 
"i keep my gratitude in my smile, a glistening waterfall in the sun, gently splashing at that person, who made me happy for some reason" ― sanober khan, a thousand flamingos  
 
"i believe that everything happens for a reason. people change so that you can learn to let go. things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right. you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself...and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together" ― marilyn monroe
 
“dinner and a movie? forget that. i'd rather have a picnic and a waterfall” ― amanda grace, but i love him
 
"this is the shamanic dance in the waterfall. this is how magic is done. by hurling yourself into the abyss and discovering it's a feather bed" ― terence mckenna
 
"maybe i was destined to forever fall in love with people i couldn’t have. maybe there’s a whole assortment of impossible people waiting for me to find them. waiting to make me feel the same impossibility over and over again" ― carol rifka brunt, tell the wolves i'm home
 
"life's waters fall from darkness into the light, search the darkness, don't run from it" ― jalaluddin rumi, the essential rumi 
 
"move outside the tangle of fear-thinking. live in silence. fall down and down in always widening rings of being" ― jalaluddin rumi, bridge to the soul  
 
"not only the thirsty seek the water, the water as well seeks the thirsty" ― jalaluddin rumi, in the arms of the beloved
 
"when you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy" ― jalaluddin rumi, the music and silence of the heart
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ABOUT THIS IMPRESSION
"we are this waterfall...above us, the sun also rises. its light-rays glow down into us, warming me, illuminating my thoughts. my mouth opens and whispers fall like water from me into your awaiting ears, hydrating your soul with nourishment, of hope, of love, of knowing we have each other... and we're falling and falling, i'm falling with you; you're falling with me, slowly washing away our fears with each drop, transforming them into excitement bounding and dancing down and down...then, leveling out with calmer waters, flowing away into new adventures, new paths, together as one fluid being, whispering in beauty, while s-curves are made of smiles" ― bodhi, fallin' with me
 
this impression was taken of vaimahutu falls, the largest waterfall of the three cascades of fa'aruma'i on a stream on the northeast side of the tropical island of tahiti-nui in french polynesia on february 20, 2023...this composition is comprised of a single exposure (f/16@16mm for 151 sec, iso-64) captured just a few minutes after a gorgeous sunrise at 8:08am local time... 
 
in my photography, i always use filters to create longer exposure effects, saturate colors naturally, and balance the light in my composition in-camera...i often use as many as four filters at time, and i always use at least one filter in my completed impressions...
 
to get the effects and balance i was looking for in the exposure of this composition , i used two progreyusa filters. along with the progrey g-150z titan holder. to secure the filter to my nikon d850 with a nikon nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 lens. ... 
 
first i used a 0.9 gnd progrey titan filter. to help balance in-camera overall the image the way i envisioned it...in this case, to stop down the much brighter light in the sky at the top of the waterfall, the post-sunrise light, an extra three stops and help permit details in the shadows of the rocks in the lower parts of the image in the foreground to come out better in the exposure... 
 
along with the 0.9 gnd progrey titan filter., i used a 3.0nd progrey titan filter. to stop down the exposure 10 stops and permit this long exposure in the early morning bright light which creates the smoothing softness of the waterfall, the dreaminess of the colorful clouds, and the deeper reflection of the rainbow/lower falls in the pool of water...as well as allow for the red, green, and blue colors (rgb's), and especially the rainbow in the photo to naturally saturate more boldly in the longer 111secs exposure...
 
the sunburst at the top of the falls was added and enhanced with post processing techniques while editing the composition with adobe photoshop cc...
 
i wish to openly thank my sponsors who have always supported me through both the good and bad times...for truly this long exposure impression would not be possible without the use of my induro phq3 series 5-way panhead with an induro (now benro) stealth carbon fiber tripod. in combination with the progreyusa filters. which i use with every photo i take...
 
"you were blessed with 84,600 seconds today, have you used one of them to say thank you?" ― bodhi, blessed
 
"if nothing else...if i open my eyes, if i hope, if i cry, if i think, if i sigh, if i giggle, if i dance, if i love, if i breathe, then i have lived a full days worth of life...nothing is wasted, nothing" ― bodhi, if 
 
"i do not want you to just be into my photography, instead, i'd much rather you take a journey into my pictures, and feel the impression i have created, feel it with all your senses" ― bodhi, into my photo
 
"my photography is my way of keeping a diary " ― bodhi, my diary
 
"contemplate without thinking. be certain only in your uncertainty, content to be completely incomplete. stop the rush. slow down time. breathe and notice. slow down everything. let it all be. shut off the noise. hush. relax. seize this higher moment. reconnect. feel and sense what surrounds you. listen to all the colours of light whisper as they envelope you. see the melody and harmony that float about unnoticed. taste the solitude of all this wonderment. smell the beautiful silence. now discover your peaceful serenity. then, reach out and touch your faith with all your senses. this is my world. awaken!" ― bodhi, my world
 
leave you today wishing that bright joy 
and spiritual peace fill your life...
imploring you to make every moment count, 
no matter what, always and forever, 
for that is the only thing that truly matters... 
  
and above all else,
i hope this message and impression find you well.
 
namaste,
bodhi
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