Alter Your Thoughts and Alter the World

Yesterday at lunch, my fortune cookie said, "Alter your thoughts and alter the world."  My friend Brenda said, "like your photography."  I liked that comment because when I take pictures they often help me to view the world in a different way.  This comment seemed to apply well to some of the pictures I took yesterday.

Waiting in the parking lot of one of my favorite Chinese restaurants for my friends to arrive for lunch, I walked around with my digital camera.  I looked for some interesting subjects to shoot pictures of for a new online photography class I've recently enrolled in.

With a specific goal in mind, I tried to find potential photographs in what I ordinarily would have walked right past with a second thought.  I became fascinated by the patterns created in the cement, whose purpose had been to patch up worn down areas of the parking lot.  

Intrigued by the shapes, I began seeing all kinds of creatures--  an insect, a butterfly, a bird?  Never would I have thought that the parking lot could be a source of artistic inspiration.

And another cement-inspired piece.  What do you see in this picture?

Sitting in the parking lot, I walked around the block.  Although the air was chilly, the snow and ice were continuing to melt, leaving a mixture of snow, ice, and water on the ground.  

This winter I've walked past scenes like this one way too many times to count.  Sick of the cold, the precipitation, the weather conditions, I stopped paying attention to the snow and ice a long time ago, except to think about its annoyance.  Looking at this picture changed my view of the ice and snow.  Rather than winter, this picture reminds me of spring.  The shadows of the branches seem to be growing-- stretching from the snow, then the ice, to the grass-- reaching out for spring.

For the first time, I looked at the melted snow and ice on the cement as works of art.  Rather than just seeing it as a gray disgusting mess, I became intrigued by the various textures created by the water, ice, and snow.  These textures gave dimension and depth to the gray.

Later on in the afternoon, I visited one of my favorite places, Spy Pond.  It was a gray and dreary afternoon, resulting in a rather drab landscape.  Suddenly, I walked by this unexpected scene and laughed.

It looks like a rock creature is peaking out from a mound of snow.  It makes me think that there is another rock buried, with another eye buried underneath the snow.  This scene provided some levity to the cloudy, heavy mood of the afternoon.

Returning home, I zoomed in on a tree trunk, outside of my bedroom window.  I became fascinated by the patterns.  Rather than just a tree trunk, it was transformed into a piece of abstract art.

"Alter your thoughts and alter the world."  Taking pictures helps me to see the world in different ways.  I hope that my photography helps other people to think about the world in new ways as well.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To Blog Readers:  I'm curious to hear about thoughts that have altered your world, that have helped you to see the world in a new way such as a work of art, a sight, a song, a poem, etc.