Whippet Wisdom – a Highland Journey
A journey through the seasons with two adopted whippets, a poet and a camera
frozen puddles
winds flock in the sky
the hawk’s eye
oh to see so many worlds
weaving through the trees
© Xenia Tran
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8 – 1/800 s – ISO 100 and f/2.8 – 1/1600 s – ISO 160.
Carpe Diem #1595: Hawk (taka)
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Camouflage
winter moon
reflected in waterfalls
her spirit
familiar and soothing
beyond her sweep of sky
© Xenia Tran
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/3.5, 1/30 s, ISO 200 and f/3.5, 1/100 s, ISO 200.
Carpe Diem #1580: Moonlight
Nancy Merrill’s A Photo A Week Challenge: The Great Outdoors
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Partner
As we near the end of 2018 we are reflecting on a very special year, both in terms of gratitude for the people we have known and lost, and in gratitude for the love of those who are still with us.
The first months of the year were colder than normal and even the beaches saw ice and snow. Eivor and Pearl enjoyed running in the snow and were happy to snuggle up in front of the fire when we returned home.
On a relatively mild day near the end of January I wrote ‘When Nature Gives us Poems‘, a poem that became the most popular post created on this blog during 2018. An edited version of the poem appears in our book, ‘Sharing Our Horizon‘, alongside the photograph of the cormorant and seals you can see in the collage above.
Our Spring was warm, in so many ways. It was lovely to walk in the hills and mountains again, breathe in the scent of pine. The beaches were still empty, with plenty of time to run and play or pause to meditate, enjoy the silence.
‘Happy Place‘ became our most popular post in the Spring. Little did I know when I created the post, what a happy place it turned out to be. The cold Winter had just left us and the long-lasting heatwave of Summer was still a month or so away.
Our Summer was the hottest we have ever experienced since moving to the Highlands. The heatwave saw wide open beaches with a sea that was retreating further and further away. The rivers were running low, some of the lochs ran dry. There were many forest fires. We found our shade in the forests of the North, a few rivers still sparkling with water. We saw salmon leap. We saw Eivor leap. ‘Toys‘ became one of the most popular posts in the Summer.
We were blessed with the most beautiful Autumn colours along the shores, in the forests and in the mountains. Early October also saw the publication of ‘Sharing Our Horizon‘, our first collection of poems and photographs especially created to help raise funds for animal rehoming shelters. Our post ‘Our Book is Here‘ was the most popular post we created during the Autumn months and the second most popular post created on our blog during 2018. A very big thank you to everyone who helped to share the news, bought the book and posted a review.
Autumn also saw a very powerful Hunter’s Moon, sparkling in a clear night sky. When we walked towards the beach the following morning it looked like a ‘Moonscape‘.
Our new Winter has just begun. We enjoyed a mild Christmas with family and friends and look forward to what the new year has in store.
A big thank you to all our followers and blogging friends for your love and support during the year.
May your New Year be filled with peace and blessings.
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
For our first annual review on our sister blog Tranature please click here.
Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #25: Reflections
Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #26: Photographic Review of 2018
Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Cold and Warm
light passes
through the trees anew
this young December
venus and the waning moon
soothe us into peace
© Xenia Tran
We wish you all a very tranquil Tuesday!
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/3.5, 1/80 s, ISO 200, f/3.5, 1/60 s, ISO 250 and f/3.5, 1/80 s, ISO 250.
Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Tranquil
lilac and gold
brush strokes shimmer
in tidal pools
while the sun slips away
we feel the moon rising
© Xenia Tran
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Canon Powershot SX60 HS, Settings: f/5, 1/125 s, ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/100 s, ISO 200 and f/5, 1/125 s, ISO 200.
Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Contact
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Walk
dancing
in a beam of sunlight
our gratitude
for love, home and family
forever in our hearts
© Xenia Tran
Today is Thanksgiving’s Day in the US and we want to take this opportunity to say a very big thank you to all our blogging friends for their love and support, our friends who work as volunteers in the shelters and everyone who helps to make this world a better place.
If any of you want to join Eivor and Pearl in their dance, here are Mumford & Sons performing their song ‘Guiding Light’:
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8, 1/1250 s, ISO 100 and f/2.8, 1/2000 s, ISO 100.
Frank J Tassone’s Weekly Haikai Challenge #61: Thanksgiving
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Grateful
Paula’s Thursday’s Special: Pick A Word In November Y3 – Radiating
remembering
the light from the sun
in every leaf
the changing colours
of life itself
© Xenia Tran
cerulean sky
the light from the sun
in every cloud
a loving presence
of spirit
© Xenia Tran
This post is for Frank Jansen from Dutch Goes the Photo, who had to say goodbye to his beloved dog Bette last week. Run free sweet girl.
With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8, 1/640 s, ISO 160, f/2.8, 1/1000 s, ISO 160 and f/2.8, 1/1000 s, ISO 100.
Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Memories
Paula’s Thursday’s Special: Pick A Word In November Y3 – Cerulean
