Shinrinyoku by Bodhi Smith

Nov 20, 2020

"shinrinyoku" a brand new impression and blog from me...
 
"take a trip into the forest and journey into yourself, listen with all your senses and just 'be'...immerse yourself in nature. breathe, and relax, your well being will improve" ― bodhinku, shinrinyoku
   
"it is not exercise, or hiking, or jogging. it is simply being in nature, connecting with it through our senses of sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. shinrin-yoku is like a bridge. by opening our senses, it bridges the gap between us and the natural world" ― dr. qing li, forest bathing  
 
"the forest holds answers to questions we have yet to ask" ― confucius, the doctrine of the mean  
 
"and into the forest i go, to lose my mind and find my soul" ― john muir   
 
"listen to the sounds of the forest. count how many different sounds you can hear. can you hear the stillness that hold all the sounds?" ― healing forest
 
"snow was falling,
so much like stars
filling the dark trees
that one could easily imagine
its reason for being was nothing more
than prettiness" ― mary oliver   
 
"seeing the virgin snow falling, suddenly a coolness surrounds you and you need not be false because there is no other human being to be false to. you fall together" ― osho, zen: the path of paradox
 
"nothing ever exists entirely alone, everything is in relation to everything else" ― gautama siddhartha buddha, sayings of buddha  
 
"empty yourself of everything. let the mind become still. all things in the universe rise and fall while the self watches their return. they grow and flourish and then return to the source. returning to the sourse is stillness, which is the way of nature" ― lao tzu, tao te ching
 
here are a couple great videos about what shinrinyoku is, and how this simple practice can increase clarity of understanding your own self and in the process improve your health and well-being:

some music to give listen...having the same name as the title of my impression, it is the perfect accompaniment to connect music with the meaning of my impression and blog today: 
 
"shinrin-yoku: sensitize" ambient meditation music ...(just click on any of the words in the blue links to listen to the musical selection)....
 
"the key to unlocking the power of the forest is in the five senses. let nature enter through your ears, eyes, nose, mouth, hands and feet. listen to the birds singing and the breeze rustling in the leaves of the trees. look at the different greens of the trees and the sunlight filtering through the branches. smell the fragrance of the forest and breathe in the natural aromatherapy of phytoncides. taste the freshness of the air as you take deep breaths. place your hands on the trunk of a tree. dip your fingers or toes in a stream. lie on the ground. drink in the flavor of the forest and release your sense of joy and calm. this is your sixth sense, a state of mind. now you have connected with nature. you have crossed the bridge to happiness" ― dr. qing li, shinrinyoku
 
“what do these forests make you feel? their weight and density, their crowded orderliness. there is scarcely room for another tree and yet there is space around each. they are profoundly solemn yet upliftingly joyous; like religion, you can find the strength in them that you look for. how absolutely full of truth they are, how full of reality. the juice and essence of life are in them; they teem with life, growth and expansion. they are a refuge for all living things. as the breezes blow among them, they quiver, yet how still they stand developing with the universe. god is among them. he has breathed with them the breath of life, might and patience. they stand developing, springing from tiny seeds, pushing close to mother earth. fluffy baby things first, sheltering beneath their parents, mounting higher, spreading brave branches, pushing with mighty strength not to be denied skywards. tossing in the breezes, glowing in the sunshine, bathing in the showers, bending below the snow piled on their branches, drinking the dew, rejoicing in creation, bracing each other, sheltering the birds and beasts, the myriad of insects" ― emily carr, opposite contraries 
 
"nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" ― lao tzu, tao te ching 
  
"think about nothing, drop everything in your body except feeling nature surround you...sense the smell of the wet bark, feel the chill of the snow sinking into your skin, taste the pine permeating the air, hear the silence of the deafening snow, see the glowing light play in the depths of the forest...just bathe in the landscape, feel it all with your senses and become the forest, it is you..." 
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MEANING
"have you ever noticed how peaceful the world seems after a good snowfall? how a hush falls over the landscape whenever it snows? it's silent as the snow is falling down, and so serene and quiet after the heavy snowfall blankets everything...it's not just your mind playing tricks on you, snow absorbs sound, it's a true scientific phenomena..." ― bodhinku, quiet of the snow
 
shinrinyoku (pronounced shinrin-YO-ku) is defined as: in japanese culture, a recreational trip to the forest for relaxation and well-being. 
 
shinrin means "forest"...yoku means "bath"...and both virtually and metaphorically, i was bathing in the snowfall as i was surrounded by the essence of the forest engaging all of my five senses at once. especially intune to sounds, i was immersed into the pine trees and their interconnected silence, all being even further hushed by the accumulating flakes, making a soft white blanket coating everything and soundproofing the landscape that much more...
 
take a trip into the forest and journey into yourself, listen with all your senses and just 'be'...immerse yourself in nature. breathe, and relax, your well being will improve  
 
to practice shinrinyoku, you must think about nothing, drop everything in your body except feeling nature surround you...sense the smell of the wet bark, feel the chill of the snow sinking into your skin, taste the pine permeating the air, hear the silence of the deafening snow, see the glowing light play in the depths of the forest...just bathe in the landscape, feel it all with your senses and become the forest, it is you...this is shirinyoku   
 
while i was standing in the silence of the snowflakes falling all around me, surrounded by the depths of this enchanting forest, i was witnessing a profound beauty that captured me, captivating me. i was spellbound and all i could do was just keep opening and closing my shutter...i was oblivious to time and the cold, and the snow piling up on me. totally oblivious to any other thoughts in my mind. i even had to keep reminding myself to breathe as i was so absorbed into the whole of everything surrounding me that i was holding my breath. all i could think about was how magical and lucky it was for me to be here at this moment in time... 
 
but at the same time, i knew this was exactly where i was meant to be, exactly here and now, this was not by chance....everything was so hushed, i was being politely slapped in the face with a resounding quietude filled with such alluring and irresistible wonders that my soul was blushing...one of the thoughts that popped into my mind: i was quite sure that i was hearing white whispers as each snowflake fell through the trees to become a part of the quiet white blanket covering everything...
 
nature is quiet with its white whispers. time stops. i can see the snowflakes floating, gently falling with no effort, no fuss. like this, i just close my eyes and allow my thoughts to fall gently into emptiness, disappearing without any effort, falling through the peaceful silence of the snowflakes...this is the mood and feeling i wanted to catch and convey with my impression today...
 
but while i was shooting this image, i was really missing another soul who i wish could have been with me and besos in this snow, in this forest, sharing in this moment...
 
all i could do was think of how much she would have loved being there with me, playing in this winter wonderland, kicking up the snow and running into the depths of this frosted landscape, enjoying the rush of the beauty through our camera lenses as we explore such magic together, experiencing this gorgeous wilderness as we absorb the amazing solitude and silence of the snowflakes in this enchanted forest in the eastern sierra ...hopefully we will get our chance together soon...
 
"that silence that falls over the world after a fresh snowfall is likely only temporary, as fleeting as the beauty of newly fallen snow, which is all the more reason to get out there and find some snow, and experience it rather than just admiring it from a computer screen" ― bodhinku, silence of the snow    
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MORE BODHIKU QUOTES
and now here are a few more quotes from bodhinku from past blogs to help add to the deeper meaning of this blog today...
 
"nature is quiet with its white whispers. time stops. i can see the snowflakes floating, gently falling with no effort, no fuss. like this, i just close my eyes and allow my thoughts to fall gently into emptiness, disappearing without any effort, falling through the peaceful silence of the snowflakes" ― bodhinku, white whispers amidst the silence of the snowflakes  
 
"snowflakes falling in
whispers of white,
blanketing the forest in
the silence of their flight...
down through needles of
pine dancing in sunlight,
fluffy puffs sparkle in
crystalline delight
clinging to trees while
they hold on tight...
their glowing beauty
warms the heart to ignite
a transforming of cold-gloomy into
luminous bright...  
it's impossible not to capture
this magical sight,
making this crazy world once
again seem right." ― bodhinku, whispers of white
     
"all i could do was think of how much she would have loved being there with me, playing in this winter wonderland, kicking up the snow and running into the depths of this frosted landscape, enjoying the rush of the beauty through our camera lenses as we explore such magic together, experiencing this gorgeous wilderness as we absorb the amazing solitude and silence of the snowflakes in this enchanted forest in the eastern sierra" ― bodhinku, live today  
 
"in the calm all becomes better, like new fallen snowflakes quieting a forest in a solitude of white whispers...when you instill silence within your mind, calm within your heart, and simply let go, a peaceful warmth will blanket you. your soul will blossom into new depths of beauty" ― bodhinku, white whispers    
 
"everything was so hushed, i was being politely slapped in the face with a resounding quietude filled with such alluring and irresistible wonders that my soul was blushing..." ― bodhinku, hushed   
 
"one of the thoughts that popped into my mind: i was quite sure that i was hearing white whispers as each snowflake fell through the trees to become a part of the quiet white blanket covering everything" ― bodhinku, white blanket of whispers  
 
"shhhh...can you hear it? its peace? the silence of the light, and if you truly listen, it will surely guide you to where you need to be..." ― bodhinku, shhhh   
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NATURE'S MUSIC: RELAXING SOUNDS OF THE FOREST  
here is some relaxing natural sounds of birds, water, wind, trees...sounds of the forests that fit with this image, with it's meaning of shinrinyoku, with its mood and feel: 
 
"nature's music: relaxing sounds of the forest" by lil bodhi ...(just click on any of words in the blue links to listen to the song)...  

"we all know how good being in nature can make us feel. we have known it for centuries. the sounds of the forest, the scent of the trees, the sunlight playing through the leaves, the fresh, clean air—these things give us a sense of comfort. they ease our stress and worry, help us to relax and to think more clearly. being in nature can restore our mood, give us back our energy and vitality, refresh and rejuvenate us" ― dr. qing li, forest bathing
  
STORY BEHIND THIS IMPRESSION
"i was bathing in the snowfall as i was surrounded by the essence of the forest engaging all of my five senses at once. especially intune to sounds, i was immersed into the pine trees and their interconnected silence, all being even further hushed by the accumulating flakes, making a soft white blanket coating everything and soundproofing the landscape that much more" ― bodhinku, bathing in the snowy forest 
 
this image is truly a revisit to my old playgrounds in the eastern sierra mountains as a backcountry split-boarder from the late 1990s through around 2011, most often with my faithful doggie, the dude grhs (dec 2003- may 2018)...up until recently, i had not been creating images from anywhere which had snow and/or mountains in them...almost had the feeling i was being unfaithful to my old pup anytime i went up into the mountains or snow with out him, our old stomping grounds...i so awfully miss the dude, who passed away in may of 2018, but i have now been okay with revisiting the mountains again with my new pup, besos...
 
more impactfully, though, is recently i have come to a reckoning in my life. led by a major positive force who has instilled a refreshed vigor and desire inside myself to go out into the mountains, out into the snow, out into the white wintry forests of the eastern sierra and pursue visions in my head from my past experiences and from my devoted love of this beautiful part of the world...scenes in my mind from fond memories that i can now find and then capture for others to see with my camera lens...
 
this positive force of whom i speak is a spiritual person who became part of my life a few months ago. and all of this is happening because these are her favorite places on earth too, just as they used to be mine 15 years ago...she has rekindled the fire inside me again...
 
fast-forward to november 8th, 2020 and i found myself in the eastern sierra during the first significant snowstorm of autumn 2020...6-12 inches of really fresh powder came down with no winds and cold temps...this created a winter wonderland in the morning hours, with snow hanging quietly in the evergreen trees and coating the ground where the snowflakes fell and lay...i am blessed to have been here...
 
i seldom ever create a high key image as this one, but i overexposed each segment of this composition a bit extra on purpose to help bring out the new falling snow and the glow that was happening in the forest on this morning and make the image have a lighter, more airy mood that at the same time creates a sense of solitude and quiet...
 
the picture you see here today is a result of scouting and a bit of decisional luck...i am glad i made the turn onto this road, and drove it up to the forest's edge in the deep snow, snow that was still falling pretty heavily...so much fun, so beautiful, so silent and calm, white whispers amidst the silence of the snowflakes...i know i was meant to see this and be at this spot, at this very moment in time...it was meant to be, so perfect a scene to capture with my camera for others to see and experience with my heart and soul...i was lucky, but it was not luck...
 
"the snow brings me even closer to your lips. the inner secret, that which was never born, you are that freshness, and i am with you now. i can’t explain the goings, or the comings. you enter suddenly, and i'm thankfully nowhere again" ― jalaluddin rumi, in the arms of the beloved  
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WHAT EXACTLY IS SHINRINYOKU?
"it is not exercise, or hiking, or jogging. it is simply being in nature, connecting with it through our senses of sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. shinrin-yoku is like a bridge. by opening our senses, it bridges the gap between us and the natural world" ― dr. qing li, forest bathing    
 
shinrin means "forest" in japanese...yoku means "bath" in japanese...so taken in direct translation, shinrinyoku means "forest bath"
 
video version of shinrinyoku for words below:
 
we all know how good being in nature can make us feel. we have known it for centuries. the sounds of the forest, the scent of the trees, the sunlight playing through the leaves, the fresh, clean air—these things give us a sense of comfort. they ease our stress and worry, help us to relax and to think more clearly. being in nature can restore our mood, give us back our energy and vitality, refresh and rejuvenate us

but what exactly is this feeling that is so hard to put into words? i am a scientist, not a poet. and i have been investigating the science behind that feeling for many years.

in japan, we practice something called forest bathing, or shinrin-yoku. shinrin in japanese means “forest,” and yoku means “bath.” so shinrin-yoku means bathing in the forest atmosphere, or taking in the forest through our senses.

this is not exercise, or hiking, or jogging. it is simply being in nature, connecting with it through our senses of sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. shinrin-yoku is like a bridge. by opening our senses, it bridges the gap between us and the natural world.

never have we been so far from merging with the natural world and so divorced from nature. by 2050, 66% of the world’s population is projected to live in cities. according to a study sponsored by the environmental protection agency, the average american spends 93% of his or her time indoors.

but the good news is that even a small amount of time in nature can have an impact on our health. a two-hour forest bath will help you to unplug from technology and slow down. it will bring you into the present moment and de-stress and relax you. numerous studies i’ve conducted have shown that shinrin-yoku has real health benefits.

so how does one go about forest bathing?

first, find a spot. make sure you have left your phone and camera behind. you are going to be walking aimlessly and slowly. you don’t need any devices. let your body be your guide. listen to where it wants to take you. follow your nose. and take your time. it doesn’t matter if you don’t get anywhere. you are not going anywhere. you are savoring the sounds, smells and sights of nature and letting the forest in.

the key to unlocking the power of the forest is in the five senses. let nature enter through your ears, eyes, nose, mouth, hands and feet. listen to the birds singing and the breeze rustling in the leaves of the trees. look at the different greens of the trees and the sunlight filtering through the branches. smell the fragrance of the forest and breathe in the natural aromatherapy of phytoncides. taste the freshness of the air as you take deep breaths. place your hands on the trunk of a tree. dip your fingers or toes in a stream. lie on the ground. drink in the flavor of the forest and release your sense of joy and calm. this is your sixth sense, a state of mind. now you have connected with nature. you have crossed the bridge to happiness.

when it comes to finding calm and relaxation, there is no one-size-fits-all solution–it differs from person to person. it is important to find a place that suits you. if you love the smell of damp soil, you will be most relaxed where the natural landscape provides it. then the effects of the forest will be more powerful. maybe you have a place in the countryside that reminds you of your childhood or of happy times in the past. these places will be special to you and your connection with them will be strong.

when you have been busy at work all week, it can be hard to slow down. you may have been rushing around so much you no longer know how to stand still. walking with a guide who is a trained forest therapist can help you feel more comfortable and find the right environment to fit your needs. in one of my favorite forests, iinan furusato-no-mori, the forest-therapy program includes guided walks. doctors are on hand to offer general health assessments. when you arrive, you are given a physical health check and a psychological questionnaire. the therapist then works out the best walking plan for you.

but it is just as easy to forest-bathe without a guide. and there are many different activities you can do in the forest that will help you to relax and to connect with nature. here are some of the things people do: forest walking, yoga, eating in the forest, hot-spring therapy, t’ai chi, meditation, breathing exercises, aromatherapy, art classes and pottery, nordic walking and plant observation. it doesn’t matter how fit–or unfit–you are. shinrin-yoku is suitable for any level of fitness.

you can forest-bathe anywhere in the world–wherever there are trees; in hot weather or in cold; in rain, sunshine or snow. you don’t even need a forest. once you have learned how to do it, you can do shinrin-yoku anywhere–in a nearby park or in your garden. look for a place where there are trees, and off you go!

above excerpt is from forest bathing: how trees can help you find health and happiness by dr. qing li, published on april 17, 2018 by viking, an imprint of penguin publishing group, a division of penguin random house llc. copyright © qing li, 2018
 
SILENCE OF SNOW
"everything was so hushed, i was being politely slapped in the face with a resounding quietude filled with such alluring and irresistible wonders that my soul was blushing..." ― bodhinku, hushed   
 
have you ever noticed how peaceful the world seems after a good snowfall? how a hush falls over the landscape whenever it snows? it's silent as the snow is falling down, and so serene and quiet after the heavy snowfall blankets everything...it's not just your mind playing tricks on you. snow does make the world seem more quiet. there is proof that this is not a figment of your imagination, this is a real scientific phenomena...it's true, snow absorbs sound...
 
some of the new found quiet after a snowfall is logical. people tend to stay home during snowstorms, which means there are fewer people outside and not as many cars on the road. and birds tend to hunker down during severe weather, so they are more quiet during a snowstorm too...   

but there's science behind the silence as well. that's because snow absorbs sound, so when a fresh blanket of snow covers the landscape, it absorbs many of the sound waves, making it seem quieter outside.

the reason snow is able to absorb sound is because it is porous. snowflakes are made up of a bunch of ice crystals. those crystals stick together forming each unique snowflake. they are are six-sided crystals, and they are filled with open spaces of air. they keep the air between the ice crystals. this is why meteorologists always say, "one inch of rain would equal about 10 inches of snow"...those spaces of air inside and between snowflakes absorb sound waves, and as those flakes pile up, they create a quieting effect as a blanket of snow 
 
and its this air between the snowflakes on the ground that allows sound to penetrate through the snow, but once it does, it's very difficult for it to bounce back out. the snow ends up trapping the sound inside of it much like sound-proofing in a music studio  
 
sound absorption is rated on a scale of 0 to 1. something with a sound absorption rating of 0.5 absorbs 50 percent of sound, for example. the sound absorption rating of snow falls somewhere between 0.5 and 0.9, meaning it absorbs much of the surrounding sound.   

not all snowfalls are equal when it comes to silencing the world outside. just a dusting of snow isn't enough to absorb much sound. usually a few inches of snow is needed to have a noticeable quieting effect
 
then over time, the snow settles, allowing the ice crystals to compact. this takes away the space for the air between the snow flakes. plus, as snow melts, it loses its silencing ability even more so because the snowflakes change shape as they melt, reducing the size of the spaces between the crystals. as temperatures fluctuate in winter, newly fallen snow can partially melt and then freeze. once the snow turns to ice, the sound bounces off the snow instead of penetrating into the snowpack. it can actually amplify nearby sounds because ice reflects sound waves rather than absorbing them. the sound absorbing effect is thus totally lost. so the quietest time usually happens while the snow is falling or right after it ends.  

so that silence that falls over the world after a fresh snowfall is likely only temporary, as fleeting as the beauty of newly fallen snow, which is all the more reason to get out there and find some snow, and experience it rather than just admiring it from a computer screen or window.

"one of the thoughts that popped into my mind: i was quite sure that i was hearing white whispers as each snowflake fell through the trees to become a part of the quiet white blanket covering everything" ― bodhinku, white blanket of whispers
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MORE QUOTES FOR EXTRA MEANING
next here is a tune that fits with this image with its mood and feel...it's a melodically beautiful song created by a friend, has a deeply wonderful mystique in its driving rhythm, combined with an ethereal set of lyrics that is driving this tune home into the psyche: "light the fuse" by timothy and the apocalypse ...(just click on any of words in the blue links to listen to the song)...  

"in the light with the skylight, it's the time for us...it is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being" ― timothy and the apocalypse, light the fuse
 
"the best way to deal with stress at work is to go for a forest bath. i go for shinrin-yoku every lunchtime. you don’t need a forest; any small green space will do. leave your cup of coffee and your phone behind and just walk slowly. you don’t need to exercise, you just need to open your senses to nature. it will improve your mood, reduce tension and anxiety, and help you focus and concentrate for the rest of the day" ― qing li, forest bathing: how trees can help you find health and happiness 
 
"how to do shinrin-yoku in the park...leave behind your phone, camera, music and any other distractions. leave behind your expectations. slow down; forget about the time. come into the present moment. find a spot to sit...on the grass, beside a tree or on a park bench. notice what you can hear and see. notice what you feel. stay for two hours if possible (though you will begin to notice the effects after twenty minutes)"― qing li, forest bathing: how trees can help you find health and happiness  
 
"in silence you will hear the cadence of the entire universe" ― gautama siddhartha buddha, sayings of buddha
 
"nothing ever exists entirely alone, everything is in relation to everything else" ― gautama siddhartha buddha, sayings of buddha  
 
"the forest holds answers to questions we have yet to ask" ― confucius, the doctrine of the mean 
 
"nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" ― lao tzu, tao te ching  
 
"empty yourself of everything. let the mind become still. all things in the universe rise and fall while the self watches their return. they grow and flourish and then return to the source. returning to the sourse is stillness, which is the way of nature" ― lao tzu, tao te ching
  
"the tao can only be communicated from heart to heart, from being to being, from love to love, from silence to silence. truth is always realized in silence. in silence, the truth is realized. you reach truth through silence." ― lao tzu, tao te ching
 
"the clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness" ― john muir, the mountains of california 
  
"between every two pines is a doorway to a new world" ― john muir, the mountains of california
  
"and into the forest i go, to lose my mind and find my soul" ― john muir
 
"it is not so much light that falls over the world, extended by your body its silencing snow, as brightness, pouring itself out of you, as if you were burning inside" ― pablo neruda, 100 love sonnets    

"i want to be, my love, alone with a syllable
of mangled silver, alone with a tip
of your breast of snow" ― pablo neruda   
 
"the snow is lovely because it has only one colour...and the snow is deep and knows its own qualities" ― paulo coelho, the zahir
 
"seeing the virgin snow falling, suddenly a coolness surrounds you and you need not be false because there is no other human being to be false to. you fall together" ― osho, zen: the path of paradox
 
"the snow doesn't give a soft white damn whom it touches" ― e. e. cummings, 100 selected poems
 
"snow was falling,
so much like stars
filling the dark trees
that one could easily imagine
its reason for being was nothing more
than prettiness" ― mary oliver 
 
“i think that i shall never see
a poem lovely as a tree.

a tree whose hungry mouth is pressed
against the earth's sweet flowing breast;

a tree that looks at god all day
and lifts her leafy arms to pray;

a tree that may in summer wear
a nest of robins in her hair;

upon whose bosom snow has lain;
who intimately lives with rain.

poems are made by fools like me,
but only god can make a tree.” ― joyce kilmer 

"gazing on the new soft-fallen mask
of snow upon the mountains and the moors—
no—yet still stedfast, still unchangeable,
pillow'd upon my fair love's ripening breast,
to feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
and so live ever—or else swoon to death" ― john keats, the complete poems
 
"whose woods these are i think i know.
his house is in the village, though;
he will not see me stopping here
to watch his woods fill up with snow.
my little horse must think it queer
to stop without a farmhouse near
between the woods and frozen lake
the darkest evening of the year
he gives his harness bells a shake
to ask if there is some mistake.
the only other sound's the sweep
of easy wind and downy flake.
the woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
but i have promises to keep,
and miles to go before i sleep,
and miles to go before i sleep" ― robert frost, stopping by woods on a snowy evening
 
"the way a crow
shook down on me
the dust of snow
from a hemlock tree
has given my heart
a change of mood
and saved some part
of a day i had rued" ― robert frost 

"out of the bosom of the air,
      out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken,
over the woodlands brown and bare,
      over the harvest-fields forsaken,
            silent, and soft, and slow
            descends the snow.

this is the poem of the air,
      slowly in silent syllables recorded;
this is the secret of despair,
      long in its cloudy bosom hoarded,
            now whispered and revealed
            to wood and field." ― henry wadsworth longfellow, snowflakes
   
"take long walks in stormy weather or through deep snows in the fields and woods, if you would keep your spirits up. deal with brute nature. be cold and hungry and weary" ― henry david thoreau, walden 
 
“the grey of winter teases
to explode into something worthwhile,
into a dream of cold,
a starlight shower you can taste,
a cold that does not chill.
i've lost my memory
of my first snow--
did i gasp at a field of white?
or scream at the freeze
until my cheeks reddened?
the soft fluffiness underfoot is satisfying
and the thrill of virgin snow
near leaves" ― joseph coelho, a year of nature poems   
 
"maybe forgetfulness, like a kind snow, should numb and cover them. but they were a part of me. they were my landscape" ― sylvia plath, the bell jar  
 
"advice is like snow; the softer it falls, the longer it dwells upon, and the deeper it sinks into the mind" ― samuel taylor coleridge  
 
"snow falling soundlessly in the middle of the night will always fill my heart with sweet clarity" ― novala takemoto, missin' 
 
"the wind sings of our nostalgia and the starry sky ignores our dreams. each snow flake is a tear that fails to trickle. silence is full of the unspoken, of deeds not performed, of confessions to secret love, and of wonders not expressed. our truth is hidden in our silence, yours and mine" ― margot bickel
  
"thank goodness for the first snow, it was a reminder that no matter how old you became and how much you'd seen, things could still be new if you were willing to believe they still mattered" ― candice bushnell, lipstick jungle  
 
"there’s just something beautiful about walking on snow that nobody else has walked on. it makes you believe you’re special, even though you know you’re not" ― carol rifka brunt, tell the wolves i'm home  
 
"a person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours. marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. he taught me to appreciate the simple things...a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. and as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty" ― john grogan, marley and me  
 
"all heaven and earth
flowered white obliterate...
snow...unceasing snow" ― hashin, japanese haiku 
 
"are ye the ghosts of fallen leaves, o flakes of snow? for which, through naked trees, the winds a-mourning go?" ― john banister tabb  
 
"let silence take you to the core of life" ― jalaluddin rumi, the music and silence of the heart  
 
"silence is the language of god, all else is poor translation" ― jalaluddin rumi, hush don't say anything to god 
  
"be melting snow. wash yourself of yourself" ― jalaluddin rumi, the essential rumi
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ABOUT THE IMPRESSION
"i am glad i made the turn onto this road, and drove it up to the forest's edge in the deep snow, snow that was still falling pretty heavily...so much fun, so beautiful, so silent and calm, white whispers amidst the silence of the snowflakes...i know i was meant to see this and be at this spot, at this very moment in time...it was meant to be, so perfect a scene to capture with my camera for others to see and experience with my heart and soul...i was lucky, but it was not luck..." ― bodhinku, silence of the snowflakes 
   
this impression is a 2:1 panoramic composition created by using the photomerge function in adobe photoshop cc to stitch together 5 separate long exposure compositions all taken in succession of each other (in a portrait orientation), each shot with the same exact camera settings (f/11 at 55mm for 1minute 51 seconds, iso-64). all captured starting at 7:53am on a windless and calm snowy morning in the forest on 11-08-2020...
  
in my photography, i always use filters to create longer exposure effects, saturate colors naturally in-camera, and balance the light in my composition in-camera. and this composition is no exception...i often use as many as four filters at time, and i always use at least one filter...for this exposure, to get the effects and balance i was looking for, i used two progreyusa filters along with the progrey g-120z magnetic holder in the capture of this composition...  
 
with this being a series of long exposures put together, i needed the great set of filters and filter holder from progreyusa to help beautifully block down the light 10 stops. and as with all longer exposures, a stable and sturdy tripod is an absolute necessity in order to keep the 5 separate exposed images in perfect line on the same plane with each other, and in sharp focus in the places i wanted sharpness (the dark tree trunks and the light green pine needles) and permit for accurate motion blur for anything moving in the image (the snow falling from the sky)...for this i used my faithful induro phq3 series 5-way panhead mounted on my dolica tripod 70" carbon fiber tripod, because it is sturdy, tall, and perfectly compact for travelling  
 
and for this impression, i chose to use a 3.0nd progrey antarctica filter to slow down the morning light 10 stops and permit the long exposure time of 1min & 51sec to create soft glowing luminescence of the sun combined with the high key lighting effect of the exposure, plus naturally extra saturate in camera all the red and green in the composition. combined in tandem with a 0.9 gnd progrey aurora filter to help balance in-camera overall the image the way i envisioned it...in this case, to stop down the much brighter sunlight coming in from the top of the trees an extra three stops,  along with the progrey g-120z magnetic holder to hold the filter and secure it to my nikon d810 mounted with a nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 lens (shot at 55mm in a portrait orientation)...  
 
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 faithful induro phq3 series 5-way panhead mounted on my dolica tripod 70" carbon fiber tripod, in combination with the progreyusa filters which i use with every photo i take...
 
"if nothing else...if i open my eyes, 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" ― bodhinku, if nothing else
 
"contemplate without thinking. be certain only in your uncertainty. stop the world. slow down everything. let it all be. shut off the noise. relax. seize this moment. reconnect. feel and sense what surrounds you. listen to all the colors 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!" ― bodhinku, my world
 
"my photography is my way of keeping a diary" ― bodhinku, my diary  
 
i 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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