Wabi Sabi in the Garden

Wabi-Sabi Elephant Ear Plant

Wabi-Sabi Elephant Ear © 2011 Bo Mackison

When suffering overwhelms me I will breathe in and leave an opening in this moment for the joy that lies just behind it.  ~ Philip Martin

This is a dying leaf amidst all the other green leaves. And yet, I think it is one of the most beautiful in the garden, with its translucent creamy whites streaked with purple veining.

Drooping towards the earth, the weight of the leaf is too heavy for its stem. But in letting go, in its slow motion drift towards the earth — which it will soon be a part of — it offers a certain grace, a dignity, and beauty — wabi-sabi beauty.

It’s a wabi-sabi kind of day.

About Bo Mackison

I'm a photographer, book-artist, traveler, naturalist, and creator of the Contemplative Creatives Journey, An Online Workshop and Community and Desert Wisdom Cards and Workshops. Though often not well known, I find the desert a welcoming place - a healing space. Its mysteries and gifts transformed me several years ago. Since that first encounter, I return again and again to fill my well in what most people think of as a desolate region. I'd love to share my desert discoveries and wisdom with you. Please subscribe to receive my five part mini email course The Gifts of the Desert. It's my gift to you.

Comments

  1. Beautiful imaage.

  2. Joanna Paterson says

    That is a beautiful image Bo, and deeply moving. Thank you.

  3. Exquisitely beautiful!! Love the magical veins. Stunning detail!

  4. Another beautiful image in your Wabi Sabi series. I could stare at this one for hours.

  5. Such power in death, such renewal. The change of color is both dramatic and gentle. Exquisite!

  6. I first thought you were gonna talk about Wasabi, the Japanese ingredient, LOL

  7. Gorgeous study in color and light!!! The colors here are simply stunning. It takes a wise person, an observant soul to see this, Bo, and a talented one to photograph it so beautifully. Well done!

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