Desert Scene at Sunset

Desert Beauty - Up Close & Personal

To truly appreciate the desert, I think one needs to take a close and intimate view.  While there are some quite large and 'showy' desert plants like the saguaro, joshua and ocatilla, many are seemingly not very impressive or even noticeable if you are looking out the window of a moving car.  At the end of our day of ATV riding, (when I took the last two posts), the light was almost gone after sunset and while Jeff was loading our RZRs on the trailer, I took a short walk out into the desert.  I was surprised at all I saw that I hadn't noticed from a few yards away.  I love this combination of the interesting, sharp spined barrel cactus, along with the delicate look of the tiny spring flowers.  I couldn't see any of this from the road.

So here are my thoughts for today.  Don't stand on the side of the road, or look outside your window and think that you are seeing all the beauty there is to see.  Take a stroll off 'the beaten path', or down the "road less traveled".  Take time to stop, listen, observe and look at the hidden beauty all around that most people don't see.  In other words, don't view nature as an outsider looking in.  Instead, be an actively, observant insider and you will not only increase you skills as a photographer, but even more importantly, you will gain greater reverence for our Creator who made this magnificent world we are privileged to live in and enjoy!