Saturday, March 20, 2010

Being born into color

Inside this new love, die.
Your way begins on the other side.

Become the sky.

Take an axe to the prison wall.

Escape.

Walk out like someone suddenly born into color.

Do it now.

You are covered with thick cloud.

Slide out the side. Die,

and be quiet.
Quietness is the surest sign

that you have died.
Your old life was a frantic running
from silence.


The speechless full moon

comes out now.


-- Rumi, A Year With Rumi, (March 22)

I got to spend some time on the ferry again yesterday, and since it was mid-day and lightly loaded, there was a lot more ferry floor exposed than usual, so I went out with my camera to play.

I don't really know why this image emerged as it did, but it seems to go nicely with this Rumi poem, so I think I'll let them stand here together to see if one illuminates the other. Certainly there is a sense of invitation, a road to be followed, and it seems to lead through a splash of darkness -- or perhaps that is the thick cloud?

At any rate, I like both the speechless full moon and the idea of being born into color; that's how a really good meditation feels. So I share this, and wish you blessings on your weekend!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

i am wondering what media this is and how your created the image...

Diane Walker said...

Hi, Nancy -- thanks for asking! It's just a photo of the ferry floor with the saturation bumped up so all the colors emerge from the black. The granularity of it is the texture they use to coat the floor so it isn't slippery.

altar ego said...

This is an amazing confluence (don't you love that word) of image wed with word. Love it. Love it!

And this poem is so, so appropriate for the approaching darkness of Holy Week.

Maureen said...

The image is marvelous, Diane. I find it very appealing. The ribbon of yellow that widens before narrowing again, what looks like a mountain in the background, rising above the dispersal below, and what looks like the moon, escaping. The colors that issue from these shots of yours are so cool.

Joyce Wycoff said...

Diane ... what an incredible image! And love the poem and post that go with it. That ferry brings out the best in you! ;-)

Anonymous said...

thanks for the answer