The Soul Speaks


Healthy feet of an 11-year-old girl who regula...

Looking out over the ocean, she stands there in awe, as a vast wave comes closer to her, knowing this wave could whisk her away and into the depths of the waters, never to be found again, swimming as a mermaid, running from all problems that were dealt with the prior day.

To have no one to answer to and no one to cause pain is the direction she dreams of following. Work calling her name too often, the telephone ringing too much, she dreams of a paradise of silence, where no one knows her name any longer.

A stranger passes by and with his head nods in her direction, raising a hand in a gesture that shows me he is friendly. What is his name, what does he want? Can it be true that he is just crossing over to the other side of her, not wanting anything, not knowing her reasons for standing at the water’s edge?

He walks by leaving her once again staring and wishing she herself was a wave in this huge body of water. Able to be swiftly taken to other areas unexplored and waiting  to be called to, hearing her name being whispered to come with me and you shall never experience pain again.

Thoughts of the past flash before her eyes. Memories of laughter, tears, and joy and sadness wash over her like soft petals dropping from a rose flower. Shivers creep quickly over her entire skin that hides and covers the soul that is meant to carry such heavy loads.

Faces of the past come straight towards her, forcing her to remember past relationships where trusts were once formed but now broken in half. Friendships that were there from years long ago, now disappeared, only being thought of as if seeing a shooting star for the very first time. A smile comes over the face and then fades quickly away, as the truth of her life comes back into focus.

Now being forced to walk along the edges of areas unknown, relying on strangers to direct her path in life.Wanting to believe what is being said, but fears of non trust rise to the surface, once again pulling up the borders of her heart, keeping it protected from those who do not care. Those vultures in the sky that fly in circles ready to sweep down and take the life that you have breathed for so long. One bite from their mouth can send you flipping upside down and sending you into the orbits of space, never quite sure if you will return standing on your feet once again.

Life is hard and yet she knows that so many make it sound so easy. Trust, trust in something, in someone, this is the way you survive living, and each step you walk forward, you look backwards to see if you are still following, or have you lost your way and are nothing but a shadow in your own path.

Can she really think of herself at this point in her life? Can she pretend that it is she that is standing alone out here at the water’s edge, or should she acknowledge that pieces of her past and present are floating like bubbles on the water’s surface.

She walks away from the edge, kicking sand pebbles with her bare feet, feeling the warmth of its surface upon each step taken. The thoughts of the ocean calling her name remain with her, as she goes back into reality, trying once more to make her own mark in this world.

Trying Out My New Camera


Tonight I was fortunate enough to get to go another walk. Al is not feeling too well, as you can see by his photo. His ankles are hurting full-time now. The muscles are getting weaker, causing him pain when he stands on them.

This deer was looking right at me. He asked me to take his photo, so I did as I was told.

The delicate purple flower, I could not resist. It was so graceful standing there.

The water hugging the tree root, just caught my eye and I had to capture it for my memories.

The three people are my son, his lady friend, and her child.

Of course, this last photo is my brother Al. I took the walk to try to take his mind off of his pain, and it did help for a while.

I just love these walks. It is so peaceful, so close to God. Each time I can see some more proof of God’s beauty

Now we are home and Al is targeted in on his pain, so I am going to surprise him with his bedtime snack and give him some strawberry short-cake with whip cream. This should bring at least a small smile.

 

She Is Beautiful


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is another photo that I took last night on my walk. She sat still for me just long enough to capture her beauty.

Resting gently on this tiny leaf

This beautiful butterfly caught my eye

Sun bouncing from its wings

I caught this shot, before she began to fly.

I walked up slowly

Not wanting to scare her away

I had my camera ready and aimed

Please praying for her to stay.

She seemed to know what I was doing

As she made no attempt to leave

She spread her wings so wide for me

As if caught in a spider’s weave.

I got up even closer still

And could see all  her splendor

I snapped this photo for you to see

How beautiful, delicate and tender.

Photo by Terry Shepherd

Written by Terry Shepherd

06/04/12

 

 

Our Walk


Last evening my son and his family invited Al and me to go with them on their walk. Al said it was fine with him, so we both got ready, and I placed his new scooter in the trunk of the car. It was a warm evening and the time when we arrived at the spot was seven pm. There was a nice breeze that let you enjoy the walk without the sweat. We saw nature at its best for being in town. There are several walk way paths around this area. This one is close to the hospital. My son and his son spent most of the time taking blades of grass and producing music through them, by placing them a certain way in the mouth and blowing. His girlfriend and her three year old were fun to watch, as she was chasing after him as he was racing to investigate every bug. Al realized that he could go faster on his scooter so he would go way ahead of us, and then stop and look back, and smile, resting his arm on his head, as if he was just being patient, waiting for us to catch up. I heard a lot of different birds, and we saw frogs and tiny fish, and plenty of deer foot prints. The trees were in line with the sun setting so I took a few pictures and have placed them here so you can see what we saw. We walked two miles, and the time went very fast, as there was so much to see, with my family and God’s nature. We had a really nice time, and am hoping they will invite us again soon.