“When we can find joy in the commonplace, we can endure almost anything.” – Ed Lehming

There was a quality to this scene that made me stop and pause. As with many of the images I make, it’s the simple act of appreciating the commonplace, the things most would pass by without a notice, that allows me to appreciate just how wonderful the natural world can be, and just how much that appreciation has sustained me.

I’m especially conscious of this when I am outdoors; the ‘noise’ of the human world muffles and obscures this sense in me, so I am grateful for every moment I am able to be outdoors and surrounded by nature.

When I made this image a few days ago, I was out for a hike before a major winter storm arrived. I had no real intention of what I was going to photograph, it was simple a chance to be outdoors again. I have trodden this same trail countless time, yet I still come across scenes like this that make me pause and enjoy the simplify and wonder of it. I may be this particular day, when the sun peeked between the cedars and lit the background a soft orange. I can’t say for certain, even when looking at the photograph now. It was just a moment that was meant to be, and one that added to the overall enjoyment of the hike itself. It’s those successive and cumulative ‘moments’ that build a narrative that sustains us, which is especially true for me right now.

iPhone 12 Pro @ 4.2 mm
1/355 sec, f/1.6, ISO 32