along with being the name of the favorite song of mine from the michael stanley band, for me this was an easy name to give to my impression you see here for other reasons too...
this is a very long exposure of 11 mins and 11 seconds shot at f/22, so in order to create such a photograph, you need to literally take the time to plan for this scene correctly, then take the time to scout it out. then, take the time to set things up correctly with perfect positioning, lighting, and equipment. then after you open the camera shutter, you need to be patient and wait for what is about to happen, wait for the picture to unfold and happen through the lens of your camera. and as the time passes, absorb the scene, take in what you see more profoundly...and everything before you which you see will have a deeper meaning...if you just take the time...
"it is looking at things for a long time that ripens you and gives you a deeper meaning" ― vincent van gogh
however, my meaning here of course is so much deeper than just that...for in that passage of time, you must take the time to enjoy the passing of time...
do not let the passing of time be wait time, or less meaningful time or just be a bridge between highlights in your life...because "there are no ordinary moments"― dan millman, way of the peaceful warrior...take the time to enjoy the moments in between, all the moments
for the in-between moments are equally significant. you will never get a refund on time. understand in the passing of time leading up to important milestones, you need to slow down and appreciate that time spent. remember all those moments too, because it's in these lesser times when life is really more, it's during the in-between times when life truly happens...so take the time to live every second of this precious life, take the time to make each moment count...
can't you see? this mill takes the time to appreciate the river and everything it does for it and the surrounding forest...the mill knows it cannot exist without the river, and appreciates it for it's reliable flow...likewise the river knows it has less purpose without the mill, and is grateful for giving it life....this is a powerful metaphor, can't you see it?
so additionally, each of us need to take the time to appreciate what you see before you, the beauty that surrounds you, see everything by slowing down time and appreciating all the small passing moments...i lived a lifetime in the 11minutes of this exposure, time just did not pass me by...and the more i fill my life up with slowing down life, like i do with my exposures, the more i live, the more i see, the more i experience. i live in the moment as much as possible, not looking for the next to happen. i take the time to appreciate all the blessings of the life i get to live, and live now, here in this moment, because it will all be gone so soon, sometimes sooner than any of us ever expect unfortunately.
take the time to truly appreciate your mom and dad as we all get older every day, and year . appreciate all your friends and family, and fur babies (and be deeply thankful if they are all still alive)...be grateful for your favorite auntie, and cousins and brothers and sisters, best friends, ex-lovers, pets and children...deeply value and appreciate all of them, not just your blood relatives...kiss, hug, and hold them, love and cherish the moments you have, each of them, take none for granted, ever...take the time for each one and each moment...
"time has no opposite. all we have is our time, and then nothing, the ending...take the time to appreciate this time we have, be an eternal moment, inside the outside. you see, soon in one moment's time, there will be no more time" ― bodhinku, time
as i mentioned earlier above, one of my favorite musicians just passed away a few days ago at the young age of 72. he was not as famous as most, but was still a legend, hero, and role model for me. he will be missed, but lives on in my heart and in the hearts of others with the music and example of life he gave to us all...
michael stanley just died. and for so many of us, that is a huge loss. i'm so sad, and full of remorse, lamenting his passing. i seldom cry, but i listened to my favorite tunes of his these past few days, and my eyes have welled up with tears repetitively...
but up until his final moments, he was not sad. he had no allusions that a long life was owed to him. he lived and gave it all he could. giving us wonderful music, and also great ways of looking at life and all the changes we all go through. good times and hard luck go hand and hand. enemies and loved ones are apart of the same coin...life and death are always paired...life is a yin and yang of opposites...
but the one thing in life, the universe, and everything which is constant, is time. and we must take the time to appreciate life, at every cost. "take the time to love someone, take the time to make amends. take the time to make a stand, take the time for your friends"... and michael stanley's last words in this world to everybody else still living were: "it's your world, pay attention"...great fucking perfect last words, and words we all need to take the time to abide by...michael, you will be missed, dearly by your family, loved ones, and the millions of people whose lives you influenced and touched...and for my life and to my world, i will pay attention...
"reach out while still holding on
simultaneously embrace life while letting go...
be wild but still innocent,
become drunk without drinking,
keep sharp focus when life is blurred...
stay strong even in weakness,
bind strength to all your fears,
and become courageously scared...
reflect the dark in your abyss
and become insanely calm...
maintain faith in your disbelief,
be completely incomplete,
and significant in insignificance...
take the time to have no ending,
its okay to be, just let it be...
be clearly confused,
be an eternal moment
inside the outside..." ― bodhinku, oxymoron
and here is another beyond beautiful song from michael stanley, another one of my favorites and easily his most popular tune with the masses. and for me i have known every word for over thirty years, and it's totally beyond impossible for me to ever listen to this song without singing along to the lyrics...it's a love song with heartbreak and relationship angst that is edgy and true. just as in life, questions for which there are no answers, even after we have experienced it, there still are no answers... "lover" by the michael stanley band ... i sound old, but they just do not make bluesy heartbreak rock love songs like this anymore...(just click on any of words in the blue links to listen to the song)...
"well the glow from the bars and a thousand stars light the cold ohio night. and the turnpike's slick, the snow's as thick as thieves. since your call came through, there ain't nothing new but the radio and the headlights, and the news at the top of the hour, that no one really believes, do they, lover? what you want to go and do that for, lover?? why'd you want to tear it apart, lover?? you say you got your reasons, but i need more, lover... give me back my heart, give it back, girl....when the cold comes to stay it takes your breath away and it makes the hours crawl. and it feels to me like i've been driving forever. then your words return, the whole place burns and i just don't know where to begin. anybody else, anybody else but him, could you, lover?? what you want to go and do that for, lover?? why'd you want to tear it apart, lover?? you say you got your reasons, but i need more, lover... give me back my heart, give it back, girl....and somewhere ahead tonight, with fine wine and candlelight he's gonna turn your head around. girl what you want me to do??? if i leave this thing all up to you, i'm gonna lose the best thing i've found, i can see what's going down....so i talk to the night, i head for the light, try and hold it on the road. thank god for the man who put the white lines on the highway...but baby, what you gonna do when the fire is through, and you find he's out looking for somebody new?? 'cause you did everything that he wanted you to do and now you're all alone and crying, aren't you lover?? what you want to go and do that for, lover? why'd you want to tear it apart, lover !? you say you got your reasons, but i need more, lover... give me back my heart, give it back, girl" ―michael stanley band, lover
"maybe it is true that life is a bummer right now...but look at what you have right now, not what you do not have...you are alive, you are breathing...so breathe in, and breathe out, and deeply enjoy those breaths, and be thankful you have what many people did not get to wake up and experience today: life and living!" ― bodhinku, enjoy every breath
and now here are a few more quotes from bodhinku from past blogs to help add to the deeper meaning of this blog today...
"at this moment in time, my only problem is that i'm still me, but my biggest blessing is that i'm still me" ― bodhinku, i'm still me
"i have no expectations. i look forward to only my next breath...i know my place. i know my path. i love my journey. i am no longer sleepwalking through life. i am awakened. i see. i love. i trust. i understand. i smile. i live. i believe. i am amazed. i am at peace. and i am forever alive in my next breath" ― bodhinku, my next breath
pictured here is the grist mill alongside cedar creek in southwestern washington...this spot was not planned as a shooting location originally during my trip, but i had been having a difficult time on this trip in february with the weather. dealing with deep snow that was unnatural and rare in the area, and ice storms that shut down roads and the city of portland, rain on the coast, mountains up in the clouds, mountain roads gated off because of snow, trails closed because of conditions or covid or recent fires...
but i was truly having fun and managing everything...still, i kept looking for ideas and suggestions of places to go see that might be beautiful in nw oregon/sw washington...and in a message from a friend's father, kenneth reifman, he suggested checking out grist mill...and you see the results...so the deepest thanks to mr. reifman, this picture would not have been possible without you!
on the day i shot grist mill, it was rainy and chilly, with some snow still on the ground (and you can see it on the roof of the mill in my shot)...the rain was coming down pretty hard, which makes it challenging to take any pictures with a camera, let alone long exposures with extra neutral density filters on the lens to slow down and balance the light...
luckily, this location sort of comes with its own protection for rain: in the form of a covered bridge across cedar creek in front of the mill...without the covered bridge, there would have been no way possible that i could have managed this image in the hard rain during the 671 seconds of this exposure...
but getting my camera positioned where i wanted it would prove to be challenging, and creative (using my fitted ballcap as an extra rain guard on top of my camera, wide angle lens, and my progrey filter holder and progrey nd filters) and with its final placement placing it higher up balanced on the railing above, a bit precarious to a fall into the fast flowing river 30ft (10m) below...
as my camera took its long exposures, i took the time to experience this place, and explore its nuances...enjoying the tranquility of all these passing moments, taking it all in, each moment at a time...
i had this place entirely to myself all afternoon...so peaceful, just the sound of the creek flowing its course as it has for thousands of years, oblivious to all else, silencing all the noise of the crazy world...taking me away from me...
"there needs to be a silence, a time to share the breath of the same air, to permit a period of reflection in order to truly connect with other souls. we need to carry our connections in our hearts, not in our hands or in our words...silence needs to be the connection, not the disconnection..." ― bodhinku, connecting through silence