A stop light becomes an opportunity to pause and drink in the beauty.

We were all ready to go to EarthDance Lake Worth yesterday, then the skies opened up. It rained long and hard, so we went and had a nice leisurely dinner at Sushi Simon instead.

Lucy was back from her visit to China (we missed her the last few dinners we had there)… we got to catch up with her and hear about her trip. And of course she tried one of her new cocktail recipes on us ;)

This was the view that greeted us on the way home: The sun was just setting, creating a dramatic visual display for all as we headed west. A perfect evening.

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A glorious bloom, up close and personal.

Did you know that some species of hibiscus are cultivated in India for their fiber, which is used as a substitute for hemp?
(I didn’t either!)

I think I’ll just enjoy this one for its beauty.

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A pretty nice way to spend your days...

The Lifeguard Station right by the Dune Deck Cafe at Lake Worth beach…
now that’s a job with perks.

Shot from the Dune Deck Cafe as I enjoyed my birthday breakfast… Lobster Eggs Benedict with a side of Nova.
(yup, it was pretty decadent ;)

Yummy food… heavenly view.

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Visceral loss...

~ ~ ~

Gone

words by Luna

I awoke to find you Gone.

Lying there
my ears straining for just one sound
just one small sign of your presence

but there was none.

I could feel the silence like a viscid web
entangling my mind and limbs
threatening to bind me to this spot
this state
this middle dimension
between what was and what now must be.

If I just lie here and never move
maybe I can hold myself suspended in time…

Never having to face the emptiness.
Never turning to see the vacant place beside me.
Never feeling the unceasing pain.
Never needing to greet the new day alone.

Better yet,
to fall back into the comforting arms
of perpetual, nepenthean slumber…
lost in the forever dream
of the sweet memories of yesterday.

But my arrested existence could never bring back yours.

So I rise
and move through my days,
feeling your absence keenly…
like the ever-present phantom ache
of a missing limb.

© 2007 Luna Jade

original post… backstory

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Soaring in tandem...

Let’s stay adrift within this
flight of fantasy
We’re here inhaling heaven,
right where we should be.
~ “Flying Through Fairyland”

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Ode to a Summer's Eve

“Oh, the summer night, Has a smile of light,
And she sits on a sapphire throne.”
~ Barry Cornwall

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Whispering sweet nothings in her ear.

The courtship rituals of Muscovy Ducks… sometimes adorable, often amusing.

This was one of the more tender moments. As I watched these two, he continued to poke and nibble at her while she primped and preened… doing her best to ignore him. She finally tired of his amorous overtures and flew away, with him following in close pursuit.

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Getting hung up on the way down...

This was a very lucky shot that I didn’t realize I got until I uploaded them this evening.

I was running late and didn’t want to miss the sunset completely, so I seized the opportunity when the light turned red. I was still in motion, rolling to a stop, when I took the shot.

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and super it was!

You can’t really tell from this shot (there’s nothing to compare it to), but the moon was HUGE last night!

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Timing is everything... that, and a little luck :)

I watched… I waited…
and clicked at just the right moment.

A Great White Egret in take-off.
Majestic peace… Poetry in flight.

(I love those spur of the moment detours that bestow unexpected gifts. Very glad I brought my Lumix with me when I headed out for an appointment today. Grateful for spontaneous inspiration :)

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Glimmering Drama in Panorama

Taking it all in… the shimmering light from the sun’s brilliant descent fading to a more subtle luminescence.

This was the view as captured on my iPhone… as you can see in the panorama, there was SO much more to the scene!

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Sometimes the magic happens just before sunset...

The light in this scene had a shimmering, almost magical quality.
The sun – low in the sky, but not yet setting… its rays beaming forth from behind cloud cover, reflecting off the beautiful stillness of the water. It was as if everything was glimmering with fairy dust.

I felt blessed to be there.

(ps… this was just what I captured with my iPhone… the pictures from my Nikon and Lumix reveal even more of the loveliness!)

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♫ "Golden Gator, Golden Gator, I'd like to go there..." ♫

OK, so that’s not the lyric… but it’s what pops into my head when I look at this photo :)

It was quite a dramatic scene… the setting sun turned the waterway into molten metal just as the gator glided into view.

as in Cousin IT (if Cousin IT was a photographer ;> )

A windy day-before-Valentine’s Day at Loxahatchee… but so nice to be out there, shooting and serenading the local wildlife.
http://beautysuspended.com/wp/2011/02/valentine-sunset-cruise/

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Mmmm... what an afternoon I had...

It was a gorgeous day yesterday!
Hanging out on the overlook, playing my Risa and singing… with a few feathered buddies dropping by to throw their voices into the mix… lovely :)

There weren’t many clouds in the sky, so I just relaxed and drank in the beauty; picking up my camera if the spirit – or view – moved me.

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But let's hope you don't live up to your name :)

According to the Farmers’ Almanac Full Moon Names, February’s full moon is also known as the “Snow Moon”.

Since the heaviest snow usually falls during this month, native tribes of the north and east most often called February’s full Moon the Full Snow Moon. Some tribes also referred to this Moon as the Full Hunger Moon, since harsh weather conditions in their areas made hunting very difficult.

A couple of days away from full moon in this shot, but still very beautiful.
Let’s hope it doesn’t herald another coming of the white stuff… I think everyone’s had enough snow this season :)

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Birds and Beams... beauty on high

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refracting a rainbow...

The sky is always full of surprises.
I’d never seen this type of rainbow effect… a ribbon of clouds refracting the spectrum.
Beautiful.

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Gotta give him points for quick thinking and seizing the opportunity :)

This was very cute…
It was Sunday – the day before Valentines Day – and Keith and I were on the dock at Loxahatchee… He was playing the ukulele while I was photographing the sunset and singing.

We saw this couple approaching in the canoe and when they came close to the dock, she called out to us to share that her husband told her that he had hired us to serenade her as a Valentine’s Day surprise. LOL!

We laughed… and then performed a couple of love songs for them ;)

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Psychedelic Sky

Man… Mama Nature must have been trippin’ that night!

;)

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Mama Nature sure knows how to set the scene...

The beautiful cloudscape, set aglow by the setting sun and reflected in the perfect stillness of the lake…
dramatically framing a gator as he glides by in the water.

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the beckoning glow...

Oh, to be a bird in flight
soaring ever towards the light.

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Mirror, Mirror on the lake...

A Richly hued sunset, reflected in the perfect stillness of the lake. Exponential beauty.

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Birth... or re-birth?

Does a caterpillar dream of being a butterfly as it sleeps in its cocoon, visualizing its transformation?

Our dreams give us the gift of flight, planting the seeds of our own metamorphosis…
if we just dare to dream them.

A Monarch butterfly emerges from the confines of its cocoon…
the video captures its move through the last stages of metamorphosis from earthbound caterpillar to delicate creature of flight.

Video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mza6dj2OjUY

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Music: “Dream” by Luna Jade
http://ReverbNation.com/LunaJade

View more photos of the Butterfly Birth in the Beauty Suspended gallery.

Watch video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH8TCXEk5uA

Peanut Time with the duckies is a favorite part of my day… it’s as much a treat for me as it is for them :)

These are wild muscovy ducks who live on our lake… and have adopted us :)

Nibbles

Last Shot Before Leaving Loxahatchee

This is always my last shot of the evening when I’m photographing the sunset at the Loxahatchee Nature Preserve Waterway…
looking up the hill from the parking lot, capturing the last remnants of Mama Nature’s light show.

It’s just so hard to leave when there’s still so much beauty to be seen.

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Vying for a spot at home tree...

Even once they arrive at their home tree for the evening, the birds do quite a bit of jockeying for position as late-comers arrive. It’s quite a sight to see when they all rise up, scatter, then regroup.



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There's no place like home :)

The view across the lake from my backyard… as sit on the park bench under the shade tree… mmmm :)

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Lighting the way.

Though the darkness may encroach…
Where there is light, there is hope.

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Golden Light to Warm the Chill

May your heart and your home be filled with joy, peace, and love…
this holiday season and always.

Wishing you and yours a blessed, happy holiday.

With love and light,
Luna

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