Digital Playground

Creating a digital composition is like placing life in play mode. The joy of spontaneously capturing vivid images in natural surroundings sets my thinking in motion. The world becomes a playground of color, sound, and action with a lens in my hands. I observe, wonder, create and then tell a story digitally.

My passion for photography and design started back in college. I distinctly remember a country ride outside of Albany, NY.  The weather was temperate and the scenery was just so different than what I was used to back at the modernistic campus. Red barns and flower fields were perfect settings to capture pictures for a photo journal I was creating in my photography class. I noticed, wondered, played with photo layouts, and created a scrapbook portfolio.

With the advent of apps and iPhones, I have advanced from photo scrapbooks to digital portfolios and global galleries of artistic expressions. The techno world of today allows me to couple writing with art, technology, and design in a digital playground of creation. Images are shot; words revolve; writing flows. As I continue to play with digital tools, inspirational quotes, image poems, and or digital inspirations are created. Life stands still at these times in my office. Play is celebrated; thinking honored; writing connects with life experiences.

An example of this evolved when the storm, Hermine, started moving up the eastern seacoast with a reported destination to New York. Luckily, it fled from the Long Island shoreline. Witnessing the after effects of the storm surge, set my mind in motion and a story unfolded.  Watching the children on the beach gleefully climb the dune to see what the ocean was doing on the other side set a playful tone to my picture taking. When I tried the same walk-over I was surprised at how difficult it was. Shifting sands only found me sinking into deep holes until I figured out how to transverse the dunes. 

Life was surreal as I watched the surging waves.  The baby seagulls were having just as much fun as the children. They darted toward the flowing water and quickly waddled back as the waves moved closer to shore.

The surfers darted in and out of the ocean as they decided how to ride the waves. 

I delighted in capturing all of us this and then deciding what to digitize.

I am turning around this passion of telling story through photography by providing teachers with the tools to uncover the power of  images. Given choice in the digital playground, students can observe the world with a different lens and tell their story. 

Margaret Simon opened DigiLit Sunday with a call to reflect. While this piece is being submitting, I spent a good deal of time reflecting on the Day of Remembrance tracing back to 2001 when my community was faced with a tragedy, the loss of 45 lives. Please read Remembering #911 here. You can access others' thoughts here. 

Remembering 911

Fifteen years have gone by but there is still a sadness as the the fallen heroes of 911 are remembered around the world on September 11th. The memory of the day is seared in the minds of the residents of my community, Rockville Centre, who either personally witnessed the disaster, had family and friends who were involved, or were horrified by the attack. 

Last night, at St. Agnes Cathedral in the village of Rockville Centre, N.Y., the names of the villagers who lost their lives in the horrific tragedy were read. Parishioners were asked to pass by the plaque mounted in the church to honor the memory of those who perished and pray for world peace. Today, as I watch the Day of Remembrance ceremony, I am deeply touched by the speeches of family members memorializing their loved ones who were victims of the tragedy. Young teens and adults who lost their parents and family members on September 11, 2001 are speaking with passion and through tears. One young man provided a charge for all watching, "Be the connection the world needs. Be the unity."

The following hashtags on Twitter honoring September 11th are trending: #WhereWereHere, #Remembering911, #NeverForget, #Pentagon, and #Flight93. I add this digital that I captured from the ceremony so we can all remember that we need to share the change that is needed in this world to bring harmony, serenity, and peaceful existence to all. 

Today, you might wish to share a random act of kindness as a gesture of good will and human spirit. For younger children, reference to the official Random Act of Kindness Day can be found at Wonderopolis' Wonder of the Day #137.

Summer Moved On

Summer moved on 

as school days became the norm.

Summerscape moments floated on by 

as smoky clouds hovered over distant shores.

Lifeguards moved on 

as beaches folded their umbrella stands.

Swimmers moved on

as they traveled back to their daily lives.

While we can't tag along 
as summer passes on,

we can hold summerscape moments

in our hearts. 

©CV, 2016

Summer Moved On by Ah-ha 

Summer moved on

And the way it goes

You can't tag along.

Moments will pass 

in the morning light. 

I found out seasons 

can't last and there's

Just one thing left to ask,

Stay. Don't just walk away 

and leave me another day.

Summer moved on.

*****************************

While I can't ask summer to stay, I can linger in its memories as I gather the digital offerings for my summer gallery, Summerscapes.

Please visit Amy Ludwig VanDerwater's blog here for the Poetry Friday Roundup where Amy is celebrating Happy Poetry Friday with her poem that is part of Janet Wong's and Sylvia Vardell's new anthology, YOU JUST WAIT, for middle school students.

Cloud Pictures

Over the Labor Day weekend, the media broadcasted repeated announcements about tropical storm Hermine and the probability of it hitting Long Island. Fire Island was evacuated as a precaution and the Long Island south shore beaches closed on Sunday and Labor Day. Long Islanders witnessed night skies lit with variegated hues, folding into creative patterns that hovered over land. Each scene was like an artist's rendering of cloud pictures, reminding me of Van Gogh's statement that "night is more alive than the day." (www. artible.com)

While I was on the east coast spotting the glory of the summer's night skies, my daughter was on the west coast capturing brilliant sunsets. A story unfolded in nighttime cloud pictures.

Have you ever wondered how nature creates brilliant sunsets across the world? Artists have been studying the skies for decades, capturing its distinct beauty of movement and majesty. One of the most recognized night sky paintings in the art world and in classrooms is Vincent Van Gogh's, Starry Night. 

When taking sunset photos of brilliant cloud formations this summer, I wondered how clouds form. As teachers and students engage in first week activities, they may recount the brilliance of the summer night skies. Wonderopolis' Wonder of the Day 1413, How Do Clouds Form?, may be a starting point for an inquiry-based, cross-curriculum study. Art, literature, and science paired together can provide a multi-faceted approach to understanding the whys of cloud pictures. This can lead to a fascinating project where students represent their synthesis of the content studied through multi-mediums.

Please visit the Wonder Ground here where you can see lessons stemming from Wonderopolis' Wonders of the Day. Send me your thoughts or writing extensions that can lead students to noticing, wondering, and creating from the Wonders of the Day. Perhaps, a cloud picture will evolve from a similar inquiry as mine. 

Margaret Simon, creator of DigiLit Sunday, posed last week that members of the writing community write about the topic of motivation. I believe that our noticings and wonderings allow us to stimulate our thinking patterns and lead us to create. 

If we can turn our passions for wondering about life and learning over to our students, we can lead them onto interesting inquiry paths of choice. Engaging students in the act of noticing and wondering is a practice worth exploring on a daily basis. You can access #DigiLitSunday responses on Twitter and here.

Story Unfolds

The passing of summer to back to school time has been celebrated for years by my family and friends. Each Labor Day, we gather together to mark the passage of time. We bid summer good-by with a toast, a barbecue, and lots of well wishes. Similarly, at nearby beaches, summer leaves its mark as the sites close for the season. The ritual begins with lifeguards and families transitioning from surf and poolside to life outside summer.

Last night, Mother Nature rewarded all those who gathered at The Rockville Links' club lawns for the annual Labor Day barbecue with a magnificent sky show. Unbeknown to all who attended, a surprise awaited. Instead of pelting rain at the hands of Hermine, the storm turned out to the ocean and the skies were ablaze with color. 

The evening crowd was dazzled by the pastel hues before us. The photo opportunity was exceptional and so unexpected that I shot away with my friend and others. 

Mother Nature gifted us last night and so I share the evening's warmth and sparkle with all of you, if you care to linger in the summertime mood. While the calendar shows that we still have a few more weeks to the summer season, the Labor Day crowd transitioned to another state of mind. 

At Two Writing Teachers, Slice of Life Tuesday is being celebrated. You can find a lovely digital inspiration that set off the tone of the writing for the day. While I anchored myself into a comfortable slicing stance, the image of what I saw last night called me to let the story of the passing of summer vacation unfold. Please visit TWT here to read what other slicers are writing. 

Celebrating Summer's Last Hurrah

Summer is an exciting time of year on Long Island. The Atlantic Ocean greets beachgoers each day as its waves roar their hello while each section of Long Island has its special offerings. There are gardens, parks, historic sites, landmarks, and cultural events to visit. It's a sweet summer life with a vacation-like atmosphere here on Long Island. 

Being at the beach as often as possible is something

my family enjoys and waits for each summer. 

Now, we are in the last weekend of the official Long Island summer and it's time for the last hurrah. Let me take you on a short tour of my celebration weekend while waiting for the big storm to reach us. So far Labor Day weekend's summer nights have been special and I am grateful.

The last hurrah celebration of summer started on Thursday night with a birthday celebration for my son. We traveled to Atlantic Beach for a birthday dinner at my son's favorite restaurant owner's new restaurant, Dino's Villa Mare. The food was plentiful and delicious. The celebration did not end at the restaurant, though. 

We capped the night off with a quick stop at the beach because Atlantic Beach is not one that my family frequents. The night was so pleasant; the sea breeze was gentle and the clouds formed a lovely backdrop for a quick set of photos.

While leaving Atlantic Beach, we read that Long Beach was holding a firework show at beachside the next night so we made plans to attend. 

When we arrived in Long Beach on Friday night, the boardwalk was lit up against a painted sunset sky. The beach was starting to fill with families who were setting up their blankets and chairs for the fireworks' show. I scanned my surroundings, amazed by the patterns in the sky and amused that Mother Nature was competing with the firework crew for the best show in town.

I did not have to wait long. The barge in the ocean proudly set off its first sparks and the crowd sat in awe of a true send-off to a summer not to be forgotten.

With Hermine inching its way to Long Island, there had to be one last get-together to remind me that summer is about celebrations and so my family and friends had a fantastic dinner in a beachy, tropical atmosphere.

 

Sweet Summer Life is Full of Blessings!

Please stroll over to Ruth Ayres' site to see how the Celebrate This Week community of bloggers are celebrating their holiday weekend events with Ruth. Celebrating with family and friends is what makes life special. 

Gentle Reminder: I am collecting offerings for my summer gallery, Summerscapes. If you have a special summerscape moment from this weekend please send it on to me. 

Sweet Summer Life

Remembering the
sand between toes,
lazy days of
glorious blue
washing the beach-
Remembering the
circling gulls, 
dipping & dancing
back and forth-
Remembering the
lulling noise of 
foaming waves,
crashing and
splashing against shore-



Long Island's summer
drifts on by,
under warming sun,
waiting to transition
to season's ending goodby.
©CV, 2016

Listen to The Summer of My Life video 

featuring the beauty and peace of the beach.

This week, I am collecting offerings for my newest digital, global gallery, Summerscapes. There are many options that can be found in the invitation here.

Please visit Penny Parker Klostermann's blog here for the Poetry Friday Roundup where Penny's clever poem, Poets and Cowboys.