Hidden Beauty

Hidden Beauty

Hidden Beauty © 2013 Bo Mackison

Knowledge was inherent in all things. The world was a library and its books were the stones, leaves, grass, brooks . . . we learned to do what only the students of nature ever learn, and that was to feel beauty. ~ Luther Standing Bear

I recently read a post on Facebook, someone asked the question, “What do you do when you feel down? How do you once again find your happy?”

There were lots of suggestions, and many great ones for restoring balance to your mood: watch old movies, dance, practice yoga, listen to oldies music, garden, journal, hug a friend, meditate, reflect, create, read a good book, watch a comedy, slip into a hot bath,  cry, play with children, let it be, unplug.

Several people replied with answers similar to what I probably would have said — take a walk, get out in nature.

I add another step to going for a walk and immersing myself in my world, something that I’ve found to be my mood brightener. When walking in nature or perhaps just in the neighborhood, I concentrate on finding beauty. Not necessarily beauty that is easily seen, but beauty in  everyday sorts of things, in the unexpected places. A wabi-sabi sort of beauty.

The photograph of the yucca stalk above, tipped over, browned, gradually decaying, wasn’t an obvious choice for noticing beauty in nature. But as I walked by this yucca, my attention was captured by the patterns of overlapping leaves, some still upright, a few turned down, falling back to the earth. Then I looked even closer and noticed the textures, the fibrous strands, the mottled marks. And finally I was captivated by the amazing colors in the shadows – the turquoise blues and eggplant purples in contrast to the wheat golds and rusty oranges.

I love the challenge of finding beauty in the least obvious of places, in the tiny details. It always gives me a surge of pleasure.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is exploring creative photography and emotion in a  series called Desert Lines – a combination of visual lines and written lines.

Desert Yucca

Yucca in Bloom

Yucca in Bloom © 2012 Bo Mackison

The yucca is one of the more prominent plants in the desert Southwest when in bloom, sending a long stalk eight feet into the air topped  with white flowers.

These kinds of plants are common in the desert. For much of the year they grow low to the ground, green sharp spikes in a rosette. And then, spring arrives, a  few rainfalls followed by hot weather and the yuccas bloom soft and white.

The desert is a study in contrasts.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She traveled to Arizona to live and photograph the desert’s beauty for one hundred days. Down to the last two desert days.

Yucca Candelabra

Yucca Candalabria

Yucca candelabra © 2012 Bo Mackison

Knowledge was inherent in all things. The world was a library and its books were the stones, leaves, grasses, brooks . . . We learned to do what only the students of nature ever learn, and that was to feel beauty.    ~ Luther Standing Bear

Yuccas are a common plant in the United States Southwest, so common that it is the state flower of New Mexico.

The leaves of the Yucca are long, narrow, and come to a sharp point. (I have proof – deep scratches on my arms. When will I learn!!)

Fibers of the yucca can be used to make rope and loosely woven textiles. The thick root can be beaten into a lathery pulp which is then used for soap and shampoo. It was a plant that was frequently planted near homesteads and encampments for its usefulness.

When the yucca blossoms, creamy-colored, bell shaped flowers hang in loosely arranged clusters. If the flowers are pollinated, seed-filled capsules develop. The yucca then dies after flowering and fruiting, but produces offshoots that spread out from the mother plant and develop into new plants.

The yuccas only known pollinator is the yucca moth. The female yucca moth has a specialized mouth to collect the pollen.  She lays her eggs in the yucca flower and covers the eggs with a ball of pollen. The pollen fertilizes the seeds which then begin to develop. The moth’s larvae require the yucca seeds for growth and development. Both species, the yucca and the yucca moth, benefit from the exchange. This inter-dependence on each other for survival is termed mutualism.

It is quite a lovely thing, to walk or drive down nearly any street and see the yucca blossoms swinging high in the air, atop the yucca stalk.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC, living and photographing in southern Arizona. She is happy to see  so many plants in bloom.