Innocence

There is a unique beauty in innocence. It is something to be treasured, marvelled at, enjoyed and protected. Fiercely.

The edges of the world seem less sharp and pointed, more accommodating and generally better when we are innocent. Why? Innocence is guiltlessness, it is having no red on your ledger, no debt owed, nothing to worry about. It is freedom. Freedom from caution, the caution that that is birthed from an expectation of attack, retribution, disappointment and pain. Innocence says that the default is good, not bad, that the outcome will be positive not negative. Innocence is the opposite of being jaded.

Innocence is often associated with naivety, negative connotations of unreality, blindness and foolishness... The waiting period before waking up to the cold harsh reality of life and the smell of ash. It is the cushion that makes you feel safe but doesn't actually break your fall or stop you from snapping your legs.

If this is what you think of innocence then you are not alone. You must have been jaded by life's kicks to the stomach. But there is yet hope. Truth is that you can change your view on the whole thing, if you choose to.

Now you might be pointing to your circumstances right now and saying 'There really is no way I can look at this mess and have any other view than my one right now - and yes I am jaded - for good reason! My Jadedness reminds me that this is what I should expect and that makes this circumstance less shocking and easier to deal with.'

Well, I have no idea what your circumstance is right now but I do know that I have been kicked in the stomach a few times and I have felt the same way about life. Hard exterior keeps me safe. But then I stumbled upon a little nugget of truth (well actually it came and found me out).

You lost your innocence? Welcome to the club, now chew on this: Your innocence can be restored.

You might think I am saying that because I don't know just how deep the pile of filth is that you lost your innocence in a long time ago, but that's not it. I am saying that because it is true, was for me and is for you - doesn't matter who you are.

His name is Jesus and he can be your innocence. Bit of a weird concept to the uninitiated so give me a second here... You, me and literally every other person out there has lost their innocence to a greater or lesser degree. All of us except for this one guy - Jesus. Now one of the most amazing things about innocence is that it holds on to hope, even in the face of the worst situations. That is what Jesus held onto - despite the fact that he knew all of us were a complete mess he held onto the hope that some would decide to choose freedom from all the entangled mess. So he gave up his innocence, took the punishment that he did not deserve, and absorbed all of the guilt of whoever would decide to make the trade.

Now here is a weird thing about guiltiness, once you have been condemned, jaded, broken - you get used to it. This is the reason that criminals so often keep re-offending - they have lost their innocence. Even though they might do their time and pay the sentence for their actions they still feel jaded even though in the eyes of the law they are now innocent. So they just keep on acting like they did before because the way they perceive themselves is not as clear cut or as quick to change as the legal system is. So they re-offend and go back to square one.

We are all exactly the same as this - we might not be breaking the laws of our country but we are all constantly breaking moral, spiritual laws that we generally agree are good. Do not steal. Do not lie. But we do!  That is why Jesus is SUCH good news because he can make you innocent again! But here is the danger - we do the same as the re-offending criminal. We get declared innocent but we don't feel that way. Well here is a lesson we Christians need to learn - tell  your feelings to line up with the truth.

The good news continues here as well. God doesn't just release us from prison and let us wander around aimlessly - he helps us. He is our crutch that lets us stand even with broken legs. If we ask him, he is faithful to restore to us what the locusts have eaten. We might not ever be what we were before but we can retrieve our innocence and we can be stronger than before we ever fell in the first place.

Even though I have done my time

And paid for my crime

Everything is not just fine

I can't get my feelings in line

Cant shake the guilt in this heart of mine

-  Oh pine my soul, pine!  -

For the ineffably divine

To make sense of this mess where there is no reason or rhyme

To his purity and innocence let my life bind

That freedom and release in him I might find

He is open, compassionate and kind

Powerful and pervading, able to renew my mind

Sets me free from the meritocracy grind

Oh my soul, let your worth by him be defined

Amazing grace! Now I can see, I am no longer blind!

Title font used: 'Euterpe'

Woodland

Walking under a canopy of green, taking deep refreshing breaths of the pre-autumnal forest air. Meandering along dirt roads, strewn with fallen pines, taking in the familiar smell of the forest that evokes childhood memories of Sunday afternoon walks.

Dappled sunlight breaks through the canopy, dances on spiders webs, casts a rainbow.

The ground littered with life; bugs, fungi, spiders - the longer I look the more I see. Passing patches of ferns the aroma shifts, the next course of the sensory feast is served.

The aged and weathered trees stand firm, gnarled roots stretch deep into the ground, the trunk clothed in lichen and branches draped in Ivy.

The noise of the world outside is dampened, absorbed in all the undergrowth, the serene call of birds is carried through the woodland and the soft scuffling of unseen animals emanates from the road side.

Blackberries on the verges are sparse enough to make it feel like an earned reward while snacking on them through the journey.

A yearning grows, the desire to remain. To rest in the lush, vast green of this sprawling world. The urge to sing, to smile and enjoy the creators handiwork, to revel in its beauty and celebrate its complexity.

After a thoroughly enjoyable perambulation we headed back home for a cuppa. Thanks to you my friends who organised the trip and drove us to the forest of Dean.

Title font used: 'PlAGuEdEaTH'

Autumn

I know I am little late in letting you know that it is Autumn but it took this long for the first Autumnal leaf that I picked up to dry out sufficiently enough for me to take a picture of it in the way I wanted to.
I think that visually Autumn is my favourite season, the rain and coldness are not particularly welcome but they become a triviality when compared to the stunning sights of Autumn leaves caught in early evening sunsets.

This has been one of the themes of my last season, even though we can be surrounded by death and face the fiercest of storms God will in those moments afford us the perspective to step back and see him and when we do all else fades into pale insignificance.

Title font used 'Autumn'

Coventry

A week ago I went to Coventry with a friend to visit another friend who we hadn't seen in too long. It is good to catch up with long standing friends even if for a short time. We partook of the famous Coventry curry, made use of the most opulent bathroom ever, watched a film and in case you hadn't already guessed it visited Coombe Abbey...

Title font used 'Coventry Garden'

Random Ramble

You may be able to remember a couple of weeks ago we had a spot of particularly unseasonal weather which now seems like an age ago- anyway a group of us decided to hit Saltford and go for a walk followed by drinks. Unfortunately so did the world and his wife. I didn't really take many pictures and the walk was a bit of a non-event but you can't really go wrong with drinks.

Early Autumn

Autumn has made an unseasonally early appearance this year and I must admit I am not at all adverse to this. Yes the weather will get colder but this is England, it's always cold and the days are getting shorter but this does mean that you get to see both sunrise and sunset - or failing that then at least sunset at a reasonable hour meaning capturing it is far less of  a mission.

 Take for example this evening... our garden is home to a sycamore tree which is deep red/orange this time of year mix that in with a golden setting sun and you have yourself a thing of beauty. So obviously I attempted to capture it as best I could in the 'golden hour' that is sunset.

Now you may or may not have noticed but I prefer to take pictures of the smaller details, the tiny intricacies of creation that are so often skipped over, trodden on and generally ignored. Partially because I find them easier to capture than big things  (generally you can hold them in your hand and therefore manipulate composition to your hearts content) and partially because I like the idea of showing something that is so easily overlooked, yet has had so much attention and detail put into it, like the veins on leaves.

and also the true colour of an autumnal leaf - if these weren't back light by the sun they would be quite boring to look at. Oh and as is becoming tradition, my favourite last:

You may also have noticed another thing or two about this little space
1) I have taken to cropping some landscape images to a panoramic 8X2 or 8X4 ratio because I find it more appealing to the eye (what do you think of it?)
2) I love flare!

Welcome to Autumn, appreciate the spectacular deaths of leaves everywhere.