Surviving the Storms

On By Al W GalliaIn Aging, COVID-19, Faith, Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, jesus, Nature, Serendipity, Spirituality, Uncategorized8 Comments
Ominous!

Six years ago, while we were spending a stormy day at an Alabama coastal campground, I simply watched the rain and listened to the continuous thunder. Nature photography was my love at the time and I had no inkling then that, over the next year, I would also fall in love with haiku, a Japanese short form poetry which would greatly enhance my aging life.

thunder and lightning…

cuddled around the fireplace

an old man and his wife

Al W Gallia 08/07/21

The world has changed so much since then with social and political unrest, ongoing Covid pandemic, mask wearing, social isolation, and loss of family and friends. At our age, it is hard for my wife and me to adjust to this new stormy reality. But we are survivors and we have a strong faith and hope in our loving God and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. So we face the storm head-on without fear, staying focused on the Truth and Light. Blessings and peace, my friends.

Summer Respite

On By Al W GalliaIn Acadiana, God, Haibun, Haiku, Louisiana, Nature, Peace, Spirituality, Uncategorized, Water4 Comments

Nothing is more peaceful in the summer than a cypress swamp in the dead heat of day. The stillness is broken only by cicadas harmonizing, peepers chirping, and occasional egrets calling. Nature’s pungent perfume wafts on a random light breeze that gently moves a few lily pads. Sweat drips from my brow onto my camera. I love it! okay

in the duckweed

a gator’s eye twitches…

foraging wood ducks

©️Al W Gallia 2021

Thank you, Lord, for this moment of your peace in our troubled world.

Haiku: Lazy Summer Day

On By Al W GalliaIn Haiga, Haiku, Louisiana, Nature, Uncategorized6 Comments

A hot mid-summer day at the beautiful Cypress Island Wildlife Preserve near Lafayette, Louisiana. Not much is stirring on this ‘dog day’ as I walk quietly along, under hanging moss, listening to the cicada chorus in full voice with a random peeper chiming in. It hasn’t rained recently and the earthy smells of sun baked swamp, moss, and duckweed drift heavy in air.

feeding whistling ducks…

a nearby alligator quietly

submerges

©️Al W Gallia

Trickles of sweat run down my neck, but I am happy passing the afternoon capturing nature’s unscripted haiku moments with my mind’s eye and camera. Such moments abound as Serendipity exposes them one by one with each turn in the path. I loose myself in nature,.. some call it ‘forest bathing’.

blazing sun…

the soundless swish

of a gator’s tail

©️Al W Gallia

Finally I am reminded of reality when a mosquito buzzes my face and a nearby owl hoots! A peaceful stillness gradually settles with evening cooling as my day closes with a chug of much needed water and a silent prayer of gratitude to God. In evening’s waning light, a young raccoon ambles across my return path with hardly a sidewise glance and our eyes meet for a brief second. I smile.

Morning Offering

On By Al W GalliaIn Aging, COVID-19, Faith, God, Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, jesus, Peace, Spirituality, Uncategorized

It is the 2nd Lenten season during this worldwide Covid-19 pandemic, in which we are struggling to survive. Do we actually think that we can succeed, as ‘one nation under God’, without Him, by continuing to turn away from Him in our lives? I think not, as faith and prayer are the true way and God is the source of all love, goodness and hope.

morning fog lifts…

the scent of coffee rises

with his prayers

©Al W Gallia 2021
Morning Peace

Consider these verses from Jeremiah 17: 5-10:

Thus says the LORD:
Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings,
who makes flesh his strength,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.
He is like a barren bush in the wasteland
that enjoys no change of season,
But stands in lava beds in the wilderness,
a land, salty and uninhabited.
Blessed are those who trust in the LORD;
the LORD will be their trust.
They are like a tree planted beside the waters
that stretches out its roots to the stream:
It does not fear heat when it comes,
its leaves stay green;
In the year of drought it shows no distress,
but still produces fruit.
More tortuous than anything is the human heart,
beyond remedy; who can understand it?
I, the LORD, explore the mind
and test the heart,
Giving to all according to their ways,
according to the fruit of their deeds.

A Spring Day

On By Al W GalliaIn God, Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, Louisiana, Nature, Uncategorized, Walkabout2 Comments

Spring has sprung here in south Louisiana and it is so welcome! As I walk along the gravel road bordering the cypress filled Lake Martin, almost every step exposes another sign of new life! My camera stays at the ready as my eyes search out Mother Nature’s fresh tidbits of color and textures. Wildflowers with their faces turned sunward, greening trees and lotus pads, the calls of nesting egrets and herons, a sunning alligator, and smell of bedding fish overwhelm my senses. Thank you, Lord, for this day!

spring morning…

flooding the cypress swamp

sunlight and birdsong

©️Al W Gallia 2021

Creativity: A Tonic for Aging

On By Al W GalliaIn Aging, COVID-19, Faith, Haibun, Haiku, Nature, Peace, Simplicity, Uncategorized4 Comments

Occasionally I run across an article that sparks meaningful thoughts in my mind. After a year of social distancing (actually self-imposed isolation), my wife and I begin the latter part of our lives, our eighties, amidst worldwide Covid-19 pandemic, family and friends illnesses and deaths, economic turmoil, and civil unrest. It would be so easy for me to just fade back into the woodwork, waiting for some change that may not come, and die a slow death of mental dullness watching TV movies. But that is not me or my wife! Creativity has always been a big part of our lives in many varied ways.

camera in hand

he leans on his walking stick

the egret stares back

©️Al W Gallia 2021

For me, nature photography and haiku poetry have been my creative interests for many years. I realize how important such activities are for mental exercise and personal enjoyment. I also realize that continued pursuit of these activities requires certain physical adjustments that aging requires. Such changes were, at first, hard to accept but prayer, meditation, and trust in a loving God always light the way.

bayou stillness

his paddle’s swirl

the only sound

©️Al W Gallia 2021

So, if you feel the need to be creative at this stage in your life, the following guest post may provide helpful ideas.

Guest Post: How To Become A More Creative Person

Stumbled upon a super awesome website that I really must recommend you to read. Their niche is mainly in the areas of relationship, health, family …

Guest Post: How To Become A More Creative Person

First Snowfall

On By Al W GalliaIn Faith, God, Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, Nature, Peace, Senryu, Serendipity, Spirituality, Trees, Uncategorized8 Comments

The first snowfall in a late autumn woodlands is a glorious sight! Almost a cleansing of the year’s trials and pains as translucent whiteness slowly overlays the remaining leaves, branches, and grasses.

first snowfall

a white blanket adorned

with reds and golds

©️Al W Gallia 2021

Standing alone amidst this wonderland, I can only marvel at one of God’s greatest gifts to mankind: nature’s beauty. I hear only the faint, pervasive sounds of falling snow, and raising my face to heaven, say “thank you, Lord!”

Eugi’s Weekly Prompt – Winter – February 4, 2021

Winter Sojourn

On By Al W GalliaIn Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, Nature, Peace, Uncategorized, Water8 Comments

Silence surrounds me except for the chirp of a flitting red cardinal. From the blue sky, February’s sun filters through the leafless cypress and tupelo trees, imprinting the still waters with a kaleidoscope of browns and blues. I drift silently along, feeling a cool breeze and breathing nature’s scent.

winter swamp

a canoe slips through

earth-toned waters

©️Al W Gallia 2021

The Dandelion

On By Al W GalliaIn Aging, COVID-19, Faith, God, Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, Life, Nature, Simplicity, Spirituality, Uncategorized, Walkabout2 Comments

One year into our Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, how the priorities of my life have changed! No longer do my wife and I plan fun shopping trips, cafe lunches, or casual visiting with family and friends. Add to that the stress of politics and the realities of turning 80, and we are now living in a new ‘normal’, maybe forever.

The one thing that makes our situation bearable is an unwavering FAITH in a loving, caring God, and the love and companionship we give each other! And one of the best ways to feel and hear Him is in the solitude and beauty of nature, where no words are needed but only awareness.

winter walkabout

among the dead leaves

a dandelion shoot

©Al W Gallia 2021

Nature is Church

On By Al W GalliaIn COVID-19, God, Haibun, Haiga, Haiku, Nature, Peace, Spirituality, Uncategorized1 Comment

Christmas Season 2020. For me, a quiet time of reflection on the trials and tribulations this last year has heaped on the world, on us all. The ‘why?’ is the big question and the possibilities are many, including God’s retribution for the world’s turning away from him to purely random happenings in our complex world according to the ‘Chaos Theory’. Yet, while we humans struggle to understand the why and how of events, only Nature simply lives quietly with acceptance.

Whatever the cause (if any), we have an opportunity to re-evaluate our lives and our priorities for the new year. We should put faith, love, prayer, empathy, understanding, and compromise back into our lives. And for me, the beauty and solitude of nature is the best place for a meditation with God/Jesus about my needed new outlook on life. As survivors of 2020, we still have so much to be thankful for, so let the loneliness of this Christmas season be a time for rekindling faith and trust in our loving God. Blessings and peace.