Wandering at Land's End

 I have always been an admirer of sunrises and sunsets. Rising with the sun symbolizes to me the start of something new and exciting because there is an endless possibility in what a new season or even that day can hold. But sunsets to me are a time of reflection and gratitude for all that the day or season has brought; ultimately changing me from who I once was even that morning. The photos I have selected for today's blog are from near my home at a beach called La Jolla where my mom and I did a little stay-cation while I was home over the summer. And I have to say my favorite part was watching from our hotel room in silence the sun going down and my mom and I letting our thoughts wander. 

The first photo I captured is from our walk down the hill towards the ocean which includes a bit more detail and subject in the photo. Between the cars, buildings, and palm trees you still as the viewer feel connected with your typical surroundings and almost excited as you see the sunset peeking through the back of the photo. I was trying to make the subject of the photo still be the sunset but also capture the beautiful scenery around it to give the viewer the choice of what to focus on as it feels like we are moving closer to the main subject. I think from a photo study perspective the angle of the street moving downward toward the ocean and the boardwalk at the bottom makes it feel like there is motion and movement towards the ocean without physically seeing the movement of the photographer. 

The second photo and my personal favorite was when we were sitting down at the bottom of the hill at the end of land and just staring out towards the continuous ocean. It reminds me of what we talked about in class regarding the Edward Abbey passage of him staring over the edge during his exploration and thinking about the "fulfillment of nothingness". That is similarly how I feel about the endless and vast ocean where it is so large and extensive yet at the same time seems to eventually reach "land's end" and go off into nothingness. I also appreciate the motion and movement that the waves highlight in the photo up close but also the farther you look out into the photo the less movement and more stillness you see. 

I think it is important that we as people still experience and have the places that give us the perspective to see "nothingness", For myself, it reminds me that the world is greater than I am and truthfully any struggles or hardships I am facing at the moment are minimal compared to the greatness of the creation and its Creator. I think the perspective is humbling and a space I want to continue to go back to because it keeps my head and heart in check and allows me to "zoom out" from the daily thoughts that seem to cloud my judgment or peace. I think it is rare like we said in class to have places of complete silence or stillness so I think if we can find our own places in this world that allow our minds to wander and be still, that is a pretty beautiful thing.