I suppose

"I suppose I thought

if I sat very still

the world wouldn't move."

- John Patrick

Knowing

I am a beautiful mess.

Living a lightning storm

in a dry desert spell.

I wish I had

more of my ducks in a row

Or rather, my zebras aligned.

No longer do I wish

to be a wave 

tossed and thrown about

by the sea

only to wreck myself on the rocks.

There's a better way - 

the way of being quiet 

and still

and knowing...

Ps. 46:10 KJV

Don't...

Don't let your fears win.

Don't overthink things.

Don't lose hope.

Don't let the world diminish you.

Don't forget to make memories.

Don't forget to give of your soul.

Don't judge.

Don't criticize what you don't understand.

Don't be afraid to start over.

Don't let someone else create your world. It will always be too small.

Don't let the opinion of others consume you.

Don't settle for mediocre.

Don't look at the exterior. A poor coat can hide a rich heart.

Don't give up.

Don't sell out.

Don't do anything today that will darken tomorrow.

Don't take everything so seriously.

And

Don't expect mangoes when you plant papayas.

Abandoned

"I left... Crossing the street I was hit head-on by a brutal loneliness.  I felt dark and hollow. Abandoned, unnoticed, forgotten, I stood on the sidewalk, a nothing, a gatherer of dust.  People hurried past me and everyone who walked by was happier than I.  I felt the old envy.  I would've given anything to be one of them."

- Nicole Krauss

The History of Love

Friendship

Distance seem so little

when someone means so much.

You know who you are...  This one's for you.

Those mad intensities

"It's not all bad.  Heightened self-consciousness, apartness, an inability to join in, physical shame and self loathing - they are not all bad.  Those devils have been my angels.  Without them I would never have disappeared into language, literature, the mind, laughter and all the mad intensities that made and unmade me."

- Stephen Fry

Moab Is My Washpot

Happy New Year

And so this last day of the year 2015 arrived, and in Swakopmund, it's a cloudy dreary day with rough seas and the promise of rain in the clouds.  As I reflect on the year it has been, I can see that I have been embroiled in many stormy waters but, with God's grace, I have survived the all the turmoil and emotional roller coasters of missing home, missing family and just missing being close to loved ones far away. 

 I also know that I could not have had a happier and more blessed year in 2015. My family's been blessed with health and happiness and my children are thriving in our new home.  We are living in one of the most beautiful countries in the world and have so much to be thankful for. 

So, looking forward, to all the dear family, friends and fellow wanderers, travelers and bloggers out there:

I hope you all have a hearty, happy and healthy 2016 with no more stormy waters than what you are able to handle.  

Happy New Year!  

Let's be romantic

"Let's be romantic and dance in the rain.  I'll prove my feelings for you by bringing an umbrella, because I'm drowning in my love for you."

- Jarod Kintz

This Book is Not FOR SALE

Loneliness

"Sometimes loneliness makes the loudest noise."

- Aaron Ben-e'ev

Stories

"You have no control over how your story begins or ends. But by now, you should know that all things have an ending. Every spark returns to darkness. Every sound returns to silence. Every flower returns to sleep with the earth. The journey of the sun and moon is predictable. But yours, is your ultimate art."

- Suzy Kassem

Rise Up and Salute the Sun: The Writings of Suzy Kassem

Clouds

"Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm,

but to add colour to my sunset sky."

 - Rabindranath Tagore

Stray Birds

World at your feet

Once, this was a scene in turmoil, a world turned upside down...  A great flood passed through here, the evidence is still there.  How beautifully preserved, right?   

Lord, I surrender

Lord, I surrender.

Have YOUR way with me

and my family.

This photograph was taken sitting on the Blutkopje, looking back west towards the ocean.  The day was very hot with only a few airy clouds floating around.  The sun was just starting to set over our campsite when we spotted this beautiful rainbow in the clouds.  Rainbows, for us, are very special. They are a reminder of a promise from our Creator.  The rainbow brings us great hope and comfort...

Lord, please give us eyes to "see" beyond just the confines of this earthly world and its sufferings. Please keep us in Your will and show us the way.  You are our only hope in life and beyond. We surrender.

  

Consolationis Philosophiae

"Nothing is miserable unless you think it so;

conversely,

every lot is happy if you are content with it."

- Ancius Manlius Severinus Boethius

Consolationis Philosophiae

This photograph was taken on a very windy day in the dune belt between Walvis Bay and Swakopmund, Namibia.  A curious and unusual scene in that a leaking pipeline caused a wild green patch of bamboo to shoot up in a normally desolate area with little vegetation.  In front, you can see white deposits of salt crystals and in the back, the magnificent dunes of the Namib.  

Pursuit of Happiness

"Happiness in this world, when it comes, comes incidentally.  

Make it the object of pursuit, and it leads us on a wild-goose chase, and it is never attained.  

Follow some other object, and very possibly we may find that we have caught happiness without dreaming of it."

- Nathaniel Hawthorne

American Notebooks

The Moon landscape, outside Swakopmund is a impressive dreamy landscape that no photograph can ever truly reflect the beauty and splendour of.  It's a scene that takes your breath away...

Never forget

"May I never forget

on my best day,

that I still need God as desperately

as I did on my worst day."

Nightfall

"I wish I could show you

when you are lonely or in the darkness

the astonishing light

of your own being"

- Hafiz

This photograph is of the 1905 Jetty in Swakopmund just after nightfall. I was a glorious day and I just kept wandering around here looking out to the sea and taking photographs.  The sky remained beautiful for a long time after the sun had set. I started walking back to my car but turned around for a final shot and this was the result.

It is my favourite.

No soul

"Understand me.

I do not like an ordinary world.

I have my madness,

I live in another dimension

and

I do not have time for things that have no soul."

- Charles Bukowski

So much to say

Looking out the window

All day long, your head busy

Soul restless

Feeling completely discontent

So much to say...

But try to explain

Or try to write it down 

All of it's just gone.

Maybe that's it then; 

Nothing to say.

Exploring

"I can speak to my soul

only

when the two of us are off exploring deserts

or cities or mountains or roads"

- Paul Coelho