Ravine in Berkeley

Back in my room after five days on the Olympic Peninsula visiting with my brother and his family, I settle into my solitary routine. I’m shocked, and perhaps a slight bit relieved, that there are only six more weeks of school before I return to the Upper Delaware and continue my studies from afar.

I was in contact with my assistant, Danielle, this past weekend as the newspaper made its way through the New York Press Association's 2006 Better Newspaper Contest and kept its first place “Best in Show” position for the third straight year in a row. We squeaked by with a five-point margin and will need to work doubly hard from here on out to keep that tradition going next year. I’ll be happy to influence the pages before printing, rather than seeing them some three weeks after publication.

Still, I have grown accustomed to this rather loose schedule and at noon, after spending the morning in centering prayer and perusing Carolyn Myss’ “Invisible Acts of Power” Thich Nhat Hanh’s “Taming the Tiger Within” and Wayne Teasdale’s “The Mystic Hours,” I took myself out to contemplate paths as part of my “Photography as Meditative Practice” course.

The paths that our lives take are often circuitous at best, and amazingly straight in hindsight. Following directions from weeks ago, I found a beautiful ravine that is just minutes away from my dorm. Deep, still, and alive, it exists, available to me whenever I take the time to find it.

For photos from Meditation on Paths, click image.

Paths