The Omo People: A Haunting Spectacle of Harmony with Our Earth

We've all seen a number of You Tube videos. Some are mediocre and some are outstanding. In my mind, this one is unforgettable. I'm sure it will leave an indelible imprint on my consciousness.

It is at once a sermon and a promise, an homage and a litany. If you give yourself to it for a few minutes, I think you might agree with me.

The adornment and countenance of these people are haunting and beautiful. Their apparent relatedness to our Earth seems appropos to those whose lives unfold near The Great Rift. This video makes one ponder on the nature of beauty, wisdom, play, and inter-relatedness.

On the YouTube site, one of the comments was that these faces look sad. I agree, however, with another commenter who said these faces are full of awe and reverence. They are OF THE EARTH, and they KNOW it! They FEEL it in every fiber of their being, and express it constantly in their physical accoutrement.

Again, this video brings up the correlation between play, art-making, and BEING. These people have a deep connection to something that we, in what WE consider to be more "civilized" societies, can only grope for......

What do you think?

Country Dreams

Grazing - Image c Lynda Lehmann 2009

Country Dreams - Image c Lynda Lehmann 2009

I was enchanted by these idyllic scenes of a pasture in autumn, with grazing cows and horses. It was such a peaceful and dreamlike scene, with the muted colors of a somewhat hazy fall day. Here are a couple of my favorite shots, among many taken during a couple of short outings in the past month.

The animals look so contented that it's easy to forget they are being raised for commerce. I know the demands of the food chain are an indisputable reality, but I feel an empathy with animals who overall, perhaps, have less control over their fates than we humans do. Or do you think that's a subject for debate?

Regardless, the natural beauty of rural areas does not disguise the fact that life is a struggle. That's why I think it's important to have empathy for every living being. We can't deny the realities of the food chain, but we can strive for harmony and intelligent living. We can also count our blessings....

Speaking of contented animals, here is a chipmunk who made multiple appearances on a tree stump in our yard. He seemed to be as happy to watch me as I was to watch him. Every time I snapped a shot and the flash fired, he disappeared under a weed-covered rock, only to appear again for another pose, a few seconds later!

Chippie Takes a Pose - Image c Lynda Lehmann 2009

You can click on the photos to see a larger version, or visit my sites, listed in the right sidebar, to see more images.

All images and text copyright Lynda Lehmann. All rights reserved.

If you would like to view my art or make a purchase, please visit Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography or my gallery at Imagekind, where you can choose from several sizes and paper types or buy my prints plain or matted and framed.

The Real Magic

The Real Magic - c Lynda Lehmann 2009

Autumn is a magical time of year. In the state of Maine as in many other places, nature is going through its Rites of Passage by changing its behaviors, forms and patterns in advance of the coming winter. The paradox is that as it passes into dormancy, rest, or even hibernation, concentrating its resources in order to burst with new life in the spring, it seems to be at its most beautiful. In the time of transition the phenomenal sights are fleeting, but linger long enough to inspire us with anticipation of more life experience and joy, in the future.

Please click on the image to see a larger version. All text and image c Lynda Lehmann 2009. All rights reserved.

If you would like to view my art or make a purchase, please visit Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography or my gallery at Imagekind, where you can choose from several sizes and paper types or buy my prints plain or matted and framed.

What's in a Name?...The Local Color of Maine

The River Runs

Rustic Mystique

The General Store

At the Edge of the Wood

Late Bloomers

Old Workhorse

Kale With Pine Needle

Farm in Autumn

General Store

We drove the back roads yesterday, for an hour, at least. It was a beautiful, vibrant fall morning, which has given itself up today to a dark cloud cover and heavy rain.

Still faced with much work on our house and knowing the weather is changing, we needed the outing. With the aid of our new GPS, whom we have named "Jessie" for the Jessie's Mill Road she led us to, we felt free to wander without the burden of trying to read maps whose print is just too darned small for our old eyes to read!

We stumbled first on the tiny town of Bolster's Mills. I enjoyed the peace and quiet and the feeling of nostalgia it evokes. Were it not for our perception of the passing of time and the preciousness of fleeting Life, we could not experience nostalgia. But that's another story...

More than anything, I LOVED the general store, all set up with those rockers inviting one to sit awhile. Their presence only reinforced my perception of the fleetingness of our lives and our trappings on this Earth.

In the state of Maine, the appellations they come up with are as colorful as the autumn foliage or the sights along the road. From Puckerbrush to Cat-Moussem Road, to Menotomy Road and Hank's Hog Hill, one can only speculate as to what the inspiration was, for the names of these local byways. The local color here is fascinating.

I've got lots of new photos and I can't wait to do it again. There are whole worlds out there, nestled in every hollow and at every turn of the (paved or unpaved) road...

NOTE TO MY READERS: I usually make every effort to respond to comments and to make the rounds on a regular basis. This past summer, however, I had little item for blogging or my other passions, and have literally done NO painting! I just want you to know that I think of you and hope to be responding to comments more frequently, now that our huge project is a lot further along than it was in May when we again donned our hardhats for work on our house.

All video and text copyright Lynda Lehmann. All rights reserved.

If you would like to view my art or make a purchase, please visit Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography or my gallery at Imagekind, where you can choose from several sizes and paper types or buy my prints plain or matted and framed.