Lines Disappear

This young, novice monk, afloat in his tiny boat on Inle Lake, the second largest lake in Myanmar, is enshrouded in morning fog. How easily he stands while contemplating the vanished horizon. That line the mist dissipates, that demarcation between sea and sky—much like the lines dividing humanity in today’s world—strike me as false, unnecessary. Without those boundaries, we can imagine the beauty and wonder of universality. And much like the water and fog in this scene that if grasped would slip through our fingers, if we no longer cling to separations and false divisions, but instead, seek buoyancy and unity, oh, what a marvelous world it might be!

The ripples emanating from the monk’s boat I see as a metaphor for the ever-expansive Theravada Buddhism he practices and for my own life’s journey. He collects alms and food in nearby villages for his monastery. I collect and share with you the lessons learned and wisdom displayed by the people you see in the images I make. With you, I receive the gift of renewal and hope seen in landscapes worldwide. The abundant generosity of the natural world and all living creatures astonishes us all.

This monk and I do our work alone, but also in community. The lines disappear. Divisiveness dissolves. What remains behind is marvelous and mysterious. It is our common spirit. It is eternity.