The Desert is a place for reflection.
Why do prophets go into the desert alone? What about the desert makes it a place for intense inwardness, not gained through the interactions with your fellow men? It is silent. It says nothing in return for your tears. If you do not come to a conclusion, you will die and become dessicated like the white bones of cattle which are now the apartments of rattlesnakes and mud dauber wasps.
I have returned from the desert. I no longer care. I will go back again.
Monks have a period of “desert” during the day where they retreat inwards in contemplation. I imagine the deserts surrounding Saint Catherine and the caves of the Sinai Peninsula, where man first contemplated god and the universe, were barren. Even locusts and honey had to be gained through struggle. That manna from heaven, the dates that proliferate in the oases, must have seemed a gift. These deserts, the men that they made fertile in spirit have paid us all.
Go to your desert and remain there until you know yourself. Stay there forever. Remain until your worldly cares become bleached white. Return stronger. But share what you have gained.
“Desert Soul” composed with Leica M6 using Ilford Delta 100 and Leica Summicron 50mm lens. Copyright 2009 Jeffrey M. Hopkins. Taken in Arizona, United States of America.
Jeffrey M. Hopkins is a true photographer and adventurer. He lives the experience, demanding no licensing fee. He is the author of Broken Under Interrogation.
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