Monday, February 18, 2013

Wi-Fi

This picture is so true. Having had problems with my internet connection I remember the years of living with a forest in the Upper Peninsula and I did have a better connection. Not to the internet, not to the world, not necessarily with other people but with myself and the earth. For many years I've felt more closer to God in a forest than I do in a church, especially the newer built ones.  I once took a picture of smoke as it rose through the top of my teepee and with the sun shining behind it I felt I was seeing the face of God. Not the traditional face with beard and long hair but a more universal face. If you click on the picture and look just below the bright sunshine in the center MAYBE you can see it to.............or maybe it was just in my mind.  There is something about nature that has always attracted me to forests and living within one was a great experience.
 
Fortunately, where we live in Poznań now we live very close to small forests and lakes and still have the opportunity to walk there in good weather.  The only problem is that the trails are usually full of bike riders so you have to be careful.  I prefer to walk without trails and go in the direction I want, not one that is laid our for me. I suppose it's also the reason why I like reading about the old trappers and explorers who lived in the 1800's and discovered many places unknown at the time.  The tragedy, of course, was that the native people, the only real native Americans, were treated so badly and in many cases completely destroyed.

Ten obraz jest bardzo prawdziwy. Mając problemy z podłączeniem do Internetu pamiętam lata życia w lesie w Upper Peninsula, gdzie miałem lepszą łączność. Nie z internetem, nie ze światem, niekoniecznie z innymi ludźmi, ale z samym sobą i ziemią. Przez wiele lat czułem się bliżej Boga w lesie, niż będąc w kościele, zwłaszcza w tych nowo zbudowanych. Kiedyś zrobiłem zdjęcie dymu jak unosił się w górę przez otwór mojego tipi i świecącego za nim słońca i czułem, że widzę twarz Boga. Nie tradycyjną twarz z brodą i długimi włosami, ale twarz bardziej uniwersalną. Jeżeli klikniesz na obrazek i spojrzysz nieco poniżej środka jaskrawego słońca to może to zobaczysz ............. a może to było tylko w mojej głowie. Jest coś takiego w naturze, co zawsze przyciągało mnie do lasu i życie w jego obrębie było wspaniałym doświadczeniem.

Na szczęście w Poznaniu, w którym żyjemy, mieszkamy bardzo blisko małych lasów i jezior, i nadal mamy możliwość chodzenia tam przy dobrej pogodzie. Jedynym problemem jest to, że szlaki są zwykle pełne rowerzystów, więc trzeba być ostrożnym. Wolę chodzić poza szlakami i iść w kierunku, w jakim chcę, a nie takim, który jest dla mnie wyznaczony. Przypuszczam, że jest to również powód, dla którego lubię czytać o starych traperach i odkrywcach, którzy żyli w 19 wieku i odkryli wiele nieznanych w tym czasie miejsc. Oczywiście tragedią było to, że tubylcy, jedyni rdzenni Amerykanie, byli traktowani tak źle i w wielu przypadkach całkowicie wyniszczeni.


2 comments:

  1. Hello David,

    Just a reader, re-visiting after some time. Reminding you how enjoyable your blog is (am sure many would agree and miss it if you stopped-- so don't! ;~).

    I really liked the photos and your commentary re: gravitating toward forests. I too, am that way; and certainly appreciate what you mean by it being a natural 'cathedral'. I totally agree. And, born in Chicago, I too, have always felt like a duck out of water there, far preferring the country.

    Well, I've been playing catchup with your back-blogs and want to mention a couple of tips you might consider: re: the Jan. entry, wherein you mention shoveling the balcony snow so the downstairs neighbors don't get water-seepage from snow melt. This past summer, a neighbor who has a large flower box built in front of her brick home, recently had bushes taken out, exposing only the soil. When the rains came, she got water seepage on the inside of the house wall that abutts this flowerbox and forms the back wall of it on the outside. Once all dried, her son coated the outside wall with some sort of sealant, and the problem never returned. So, maybe you/your neighbors (or better the landlords/owners would consider this as a solution to any further water seepage).

    The second tip: in another Jan. entry, you mentioned changing to the 'energy-saving lightbulbs'. If they are the new flourescent bulbs containing mercury, I would seriously consider the 'health-saving' aspect over the energy-saving one, if possible...

    ...when the city blitzed us with these new bulbs (distributing them by the boxload through the library system), I was already suspicuous.
    But, I took one home and experimented with putting one in a lamp adjacent to another lamp with the old incandescent 'warm' lighting. Both were over my bed. On the first try, I felt what you did-- that the light was harsh-- something about it was just 'off-putting'. I trust my intuition and keener senses about it. So, I stayed with the incandescent ones. And, I also got myself a couple of full-spectrum (natural lighting that mimics the sunlight spectrum). If you can order or search for them, they're well worth it. Or, if you can afford to get yourself a sunlight lamp (often used to overcome S.A.D. Syndrome) that would be better. But, you can also put just a few bulbs in strategic areas of your home where you sit daily (like over your kitchen table) or desk, etc, as an alternate to ALL of these new flourescent things.

    It seems to me, more and more, the powers-that-be want to take everything natural away from humans: lighting, food, water, land, etc. It's inhuman! Musn't happen....

    Well, just wanted to say hello, and
    make these suggestions.

    Take care and keep writing!
    Stephanie/Chicago

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  2. Thanks Stephanie, for your comments. I'm happy that you still enjoy reading my blog.

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