Solitude ~ Fall 2009
Solitude is painful when one is young, but delightful when one is more mature.
Albert Einstein
If it were not for the early morning sun in a partly cloudy sky there would be little at which to look. The early morning, during the first few hours from sunrise to when the shadows grow shorter, along with the same time period in the late afternoon, is a magical time when light paints the landscape with warmth enhancing that which is already there. The early morning/late afternoon light is moody, sensual, inviting, breathtaking. During these all too brief encounters with the light dancing off trees and roads, mountains and valleys, one cannot refuse the awesome power of the natural world.
On the morning this image was captured I was circumnavigating Lake Le-Aqua-Na in Northwest Illinois near Lena. The fall colors are striking this time of year. Frost clung to the grassy prairies around the lake. Ground squirrels ran from here to there gathering nuts from the acorns that fell from the prevalent oak trees. At one point two deer darted onto the road, paused briefly, and ran to the other side. As I approached I slowed to a crawl. As I did both deer stopped suddenly and turned their heads to look at this stranger in their midst. When they determined I was no danger they darted off deep into the woods.
This particular Sunday morning was spent in the solitude of nature. I never felt alone, rather I absorbed the calm of the morning light, focusing my camera on the rich landscapes that presented themselves to be as gifts of the forest. Perhaps, as Einstein seems to say, solitude is wasted on the young.
The Solitude ~ Fall 2009 by Roger Passman, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
