dreamtime

Dreamtime is another way of experiencing time.  


Dreamtime refers to experiences and beliefs conceptualized by the Australian Indigenous people. There are at least four aspects to Dreamtime:


-the beginning of all things 
-the life and influence of the ancestors 
-the way of life and death
-the sources of power in life


Dreamtime includes all of these four facets at the same time, being a condition beyond time and space as known in everyday life. 


The indigenous people of Australia call it the all-at-once time instead of the one-thing-after-another time. This is because they experience Dreamtime as the past present and future coexisting. This condition – is met when the tribal member lives according to tribal rules, and then is initiated through rituals and hearing the myths of the tribe.

The concept of all-at-once time is a fascinating one.  Could we be experiencing a glimpse of it when gaze out over the horizon of the ocean or look at the stars in the universe?

life at 15 mph

when we are younger, we are conditioned to go for our goals;
get that grade, get that degree, get that job.
but at some point in life, something shifts,
and we begin to understand that the journey is as important as the destination.


it's hard to enjoy the journey when we're racing along the freeway at 65 mph
or "doing" four European countries in fourteen days.
sometimes we need to take the world at 15 mph (or less!) instead.


slow down and enjoy your trip
through life.

photo: road to Waihe'e Trail head

Maui, Hawai'i

(c) Bruce Behnke 2011

when does a long time become timeless?

protea have been on our earth for 300 million years.


it gives one pause to contemplate that length of time.


this plant genus has continued its unbroken chain longer than
mankind has been around to record history.

photo: protea  in the Kula, Maui, Hawaii district

(c) Bruce Behnke 2011

once living

this piece of driftwood, found on the shores of Maui,
was once living, once a proud tree, host to bugs and birds,
provider of shade, purifier of air, a soothing sight to the eye


we can get very analytical:
where did it stand?
what year did it start to grow?
why did it die?


or we can just enjoy it for what it is now

 photo: Makena, Maui, Hawaii

(c) Bruce Behnke 2011

Lanai

the island of Lanai. Hawaii
 as seen from Maui, Hawaii

photo: (c) bruce behnke, 2011

silence

an old Buddhist saying:

do not speak unless it improves upon silence.

Kaena Point Polyptych

Kaena Point

Oahu, Hawaii

Photo: (c) Bruce Behnke 2011

today

it's time to

put your feet in the water

and your head in the clouds

拈花微笑

being in the moment

Urban birds have a tough time in the best of circumstances,
but this small dove was making the most of the last rays of
sun in downtown Honolulu's Tamarind Square.

muir woods

Muir Woods

California

Photo: Bruce Behnke

life on a razor's edge 2

with changes in water levels,

temperatures, weather and 

atmosphere, aren't we all

living on a razor's edge?

Point Pelee/Lake Erie
Ontario, Canada

Photo: Bruce Behnke

green

Point Pelee, Ontario

Photo: Bruce Behnke

pay attention 9

When we are in the moment, paying attention, really paying attention, we see things we might not normally see... like the elephants strolling down the side of the river in Windsor, Ontario.


Elephants in Ontario?


They are actually there... but they are sculpted elephants, one of a series of interesting artworks by Ontario artists.

blue

white

here and now

To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wildflower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.

~William Blake

genius in nature

viewing the lake

Lake Erie from Point Pelee, Ontario

Photo: (c) 2011 Bruce Behnke