Exploring new ares is an exciting part of nature photography, last week a few dp posts have been from the county that I grew up in until at age 18 I move 90 miles from home. Revisiting that countryside a couple of weeks ago not only brought back memories but gave me an appreciation of lands we all may be familiar with but never really take time to notice the subtle beauty of. What does it take to realize such things? I wrote that I hadn’t really spent much time back in this area for many many years, but would drive through it regularly to visit family. Is it so hard to take time to appreciate nature that we miss most of the world around us? I’m afraid this may be the case. Lives are busy, family, work, chores, errands, getting the car fixed, calling the plumber whatever the case may be we seem to have gotten very good at filling our days, weeks, months and years with busy work. I hope this doesn’t continue to encroach on the lands we do have making them even more distant in thought and visits. Taking time to appreciate the beauties of home is much more important than the grand lands and distant places we visit only on vacations. It may be a little early for a new year resolution but if could choose one now it would be to take more time to appreciate places close to home that are part of my life’s history that I may have so gentle forgotten.
© Brad Mangas
