Thinking of miracles I always imagine something surrounded by fireworks and colors, song and light. But then I remember that it’s in the dark that seeds get their strength to become trees, dreams get their wings to carry us to the highest of ourselves.
So I approach The Old Man and The Sea, one of my favorite spots on the northwest coast of Donegal, on the Wild Atlantic Way.
![donegal landscape, wild atlantic way, columbia hillen](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/458ce8_a846729fc1404d3c9c1f7cb87d314d8e~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_735,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/458ce8_a846729fc1404d3c9c1f7cb87d314d8e~mv2.jpg)
In this land of quiet miracles, I try to learn some of the wisdom of the rocks, discover some of the majesty that makes a rock - like a Romanian poet once said, by never crushing the world’s crown of wonders but understanding it by adding to its secret, by filling it with love…
![rocks in donegal photos, columbia hillen photography](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/458ce8_912860507a314ad4a2ac6b8059a8f57b~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_735,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/458ce8_912860507a314ad4a2ac6b8059a8f57b~mv2.jpg)
Eu nu strivesc corola de minuni a lumii
by Lucian Blaga
Eu nu strivesc corola de minuni a lumii
şi nu ucid
cu mintea tainele, ce le-ntâlnesc
în calea mea
în flori, în ochi, pe buze ori morminte.
Lumina altora
sugrumă vraja nepătrunsului ascuns
în adâncimi de întuneric,
dar eu,
eu cu lumina mea sporesc a lumii taină -
şi-ntocmai cum cu razele ei albe luna
nu micşorează, ci tremurătoare
măreşte şi mai tare taina nopţii,
aşa îmbogăţesc şi eu întunecata zare
cu largi fiori de sfânt mister
şi tot ce-i neînţeles
se schimbă-n neînţelesuri şi mai mari
sub ochii mei-
căci eu iubesc
şi flori şi ochi şi buze şi morminte.
![nature photography donegal, columbia hillen photography](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/458ce8_2df734fa03b2402483e4e8342fdb044c~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_735,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/458ce8_2df734fa03b2402483e4e8342fdb044c~mv2.jpg)
… is life ever in black and white, or only shades of grey?
![columbia hillen photography](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/458ce8_00fff49f98884ae79b1ae9e08ccc53c9~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_735,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/458ce8_00fff49f98884ae79b1ae9e08ccc53c9~mv2.jpg)
… how comes the simple act of mirroring can show you a whole different world?
![nature photography columbia hillen, photos of donegal](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/458ce8_c8f0837c8f2d4d869fcc03093f367570~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_735,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/458ce8_c8f0837c8f2d4d869fcc03093f367570~mv2.jpg)
… how can I really open my eyes to not just see?
![photos of rocks in donegal, donegal photography, columbia hillen](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/458ce8_ab47b07d56854896a97a0df5e22d8824~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_735,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/458ce8_ab47b07d56854896a97a0df5e22d8824~mv2.jpg)
… if I understand rocks, will I ever understand fear?
Comments