The essence of all beautiful art, all great art, is gratitude. – Friedrich Nietzsche

 

 

Some days it is the sunrise, color so rich it can’t possibly be real.

Other times it is the power of words which bring meaning to a moment,

Or it is a clash of color so pure I cannot look away,

But always, the deepest beauty strikes me when I least expect it.

That is when I stop and hold my breath,

And if I have my camera, the images come quickly.

This is what happens in the snow-saturated long months of winter.

This beauty is what makes my soul sing.

 

 

It makes sense to me: the essence of beauty is gratitude. By recognizing something beautiful, we are saying thank you.

 

The artist is the confidant of nature, flowers carry on dialogues with him through the graceful bending of their stems and the harmoniously tinted nuances of their blossoms. Every flower has a cordial word which nature directs towards him.  – Auguste Rodin

 

 

Let us decide on the route that we wish to take to pass our life, and attempt to sow that route with flowers. – Madame Émilie du Châtelet

 

 

The earth laughs in flowers. ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

 

I must have flowers, always, and always. ― Claude Monet

 

What brings you deep joy?