Inspired by Long Island's ocean shores, my newest gallery of artistic expressions captures summer across the globe over a two-year period. Reflecting on the ever-changing patterns of the summer season, lean in to honor the fresh moments of shimmering pearl shores, greenscapes of woodlands, country terrains, mountainsides, and pivotal places renewing life.
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You Are Cordially Invited To
stroll through an unfolding mixed collection of
glimmering sights, calming sounds, and wistful moments
showcasing summer from pre-pandemic to present time.
This collection from creative friends is a gift
to lighten spirits and provide hope
that life will find its eternal summer light
and brighten our lands.
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| Linda Mitchell, Summer 2020 paper collage poem |
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Ponder These Questions to Engage Your Senses:
Has summer changed its appeal over these years?
Has the pandemic bruised our natural treasures?
Have we changed our notion of summer escapes?
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While different perspectives drive our inclinations, I can assure you that once you step into this vast array of summertime looks, you will relax and let nature's hand soothe your soul. Beyond the image poems, nature photos, and inspiration, let the songs of summer fill your heart. Click here for my Embraceable Summer playlist.
Step Into Pre-Pandemic Summer
2019
seasonal footprints
summer etches script in sand
hearts wash at shore
but in its haste
waves of life come roaring in-
summer sands shift
summer sands shift
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| Photo by Rebecca Herzog, 2019 |
seasons pass by
a pandemic moves in
light is veiled in black
summer drifts in
soaked in sweltering heat
earth waits for signals
then
September
ripples in
with softness
whispering across
a voiceless canal,
bidding summer Godspeed
©CV, 2020
This gallery is created in segments due to the vast array of artistic expressions spanning a two-year journey of embraceable summers. This is the introductory section that charts the story. After looking at many digitals that were sent in, I realized that there is an underlying truth. Nature's beauty is a constant and a reminder that life continues with hope for a better tomorrow. Thanks to the global contributors who crafted individual stories that share quiet moments of inspiration despite the pandemic. This gives credence to the incredible resilience of the human spirit.
Indulge in the serenity of summer across the globe. I showcase Long Island's beauty but there are many other stops in future segments of the gallery. Stay tuned for more looks of summer from 2019's pre-pandemic time to 2020's quarantine life.
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As host of Poetry Friday this week, I have invited poetry friends to collect their image poems, photographs, and artwork to spread inspiration through the Embraceable Summer Gallery. You can see work that has been collected on Twitter under the hashtag #EmbraceableSummer. Linda Mitchell, Rebecca Herzog, and Laura Purdie Salas are poetry friends who share their work with me today. Thanks to their creativity and the work of many others, I bring you this new gallery with enthusiasm.
NOTE: For those who have already submitted their work via Mr. Linky, I apologize that unbeknown to me, the first blog I wrote vanished into cyberspace. Please resubmit your work below.)
Well, the first link is the wrong Friday. I thought I was fixing it and instead made entry number 2. Oops. thanks for hosting. the gallery is gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteNot to worry-I figured it out and I am sure others will, too, Jone. I hope you will send me your new shadorma poem for the other segments of the gallery.
DeleteThanks for hosting us all this week, Carol! And thanks to Linda, Rebecca and Laura for sharing these beautiful and timely works. And, you! Gorgeous words and images. Even your intro is soul-soothing - "shimmering pearl shores, greenscapes of woodlands...."
ReplyDeleteThank you, Robyn, for being supportive and commenting on the three Poetry Friday poets who contributed to my summer, past and present, gallery.
DeleteI'm ready to be swept away in your "Embraceable Summer Gallery, love all the ochres, bits of minty-sea green, cerulean, and cobalt blues–beautiful! And this gorgeous haiku,
ReplyDelete"seasonal footprints
summer etches script in sand
hearts wash at shore."
Thanks for all Carol, and for hosting the roundup this week.
Thanks from the artist's perspective, Michelle. I loved rethinking my post in gorgeous colors of summer.
DeleteBeautiful words here, Carol. I am happy to see the beginnings of your new gallery. While mine is not the happiest of this summer captures, it is part of what has happened. Thanks for hosting this week foray into September!
ReplyDeleteLinda, we all need a touch of reality to remind us that we must be thankful for the earth and how it heals. I hope your weekend is calm and enjoyable.
DeleteCarol thanks for putting this gallery of beautiful images together. Summer does require celebration and it will be hard for me to let it go this year. Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteCarol, as we down under move inextricably towards a new summer season, I fear its embrace may remain spurned somewhat by the Covid circumstances. It is with something of a nostalgic eye that I read the collected poems you are sharing. It will no doubt be a unique summer and moments of sanity will wash up upon our respective shores. So like you, I will honour the blessings it bestows. Thanks for hosting and sharing these'warming' words and images.
ReplyDeleteWe had frost last week - but this week Spring has sprung. I’m not really to embrace Summer yet - am hoping we can hold tight to this milder weather which we just don’t get enough of!
ReplyDeleteThank-you for your continual reminders to find joy and hope in small moments - and for hosting us this week. Hugs.
Gorgeous gallery, Carol! Thank you for hosting and for giving us the sensory questions to ponder..."Have we changed our notion of summer escapes?" For me, yes! We''ve stayed closer to home this summer - noticing more what is in our immediate environment rather than exotic locals. Though not being able to travel home-home to the US to visit loved ones has been horrible. Soon, I hope.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Thanks for hosting and for reminding us of the beauty that was in this summer, in spite of everything.
ReplyDeleteYou create such beautiful galleries, Carol. Thanks for hosting today and providing an array of such wonderful words.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful visual and poetic imagery! Thank you for this virtual vacation. Thanks also for hosting this week!
ReplyDeleteWhat riches you're sharing this week, Carol! Thank you! We can all use the beauty and inspiration. Thanks, too, for hosting. I'm in this week with an original poem (sort of.) :)
ReplyDeleteHappy Friday! Thank you for hosting!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful as always, Carol. You are an amazement! Thanks for hosting today, and take care.
ReplyDeleteCarol, Thank you for hosting, and for a wonderful treat for both the eyes and the ears--it's simply beautiful!
ReplyDeleteHi, left my link and comment last night, but since they seemed to have disappeared, here I am again. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the lovely preview of your new summer gallery (Linda M's collage is gorgeous!). We certainly need the healing power of nature and to be reminded that despite all, there is beauty in the world. Thanks for hosting this week. I'm happy to be back from my summer blog break. :)
Thank you for this lovely exploration of what summer has always meant and what it means this year. I appreciated your invitation to contribute, and the way it impacted how I looked at my summer. We've had a smoky end to our summer here in the San Francisco Bay Area, which has thrown even more distractions to what we already had, and the photo and poem did not come together, but I am glad to visit with others' poems on this topic today.
ReplyDeleteCarol, Thank you for hosting this week's round up. I love the questions you ask the reader of your blog this week to ponder about summer. They are valid questions. The season took on a whole different feel this year. I checked out your about page....lots to dive into there. Thanks for being a poet's inspiration! (From Carol at The Apples in My Orchard)
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting today, Carol! Your gallery is gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Catherine. If you have an image poem for this gallery's upcoming segments please send it.
Delete"Nature's beauty is a constant and a reminder that life continues with hope for a better tomorrow." Such perfect words for right now. Thank you, Carol, for the beauty and for hosting us all here at your home today. xo
ReplyDeleteAmy, thank you for reminding me that I wrote that line. It will grace the 2nd segment of my gallery as an opening thought. My best wishes to you as you start a new chapter in your teaching life. Going back to your roots is a wonderful move. Once again my condolences are filled with sweet prayers for peace.
DeleteThank you for hosting and for the incredible riches in this post! You are a force for good in the world!
ReplyDeleteMay there be many more offerings for the gallery so thank you for recognizing the beauty within, Mary Lee. i have your Summer of 2020 image poem ready to find its place in the gallery.
DeleteWhat a lovely gallery. Thank you for putting it together and sharing it. It's given me a moment of quiet and gratitude.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for hosting Poetry Friday, too.
Susan, thank you for stopping by. I was hoping that you would post a blog for PF this week. You can still post one if you choose. I will definitely read it.
DeleteThank you for hosting, Carol. Your gallery is a breath of fresh air and a balm to weary spirts. I look forward to drinking deep from the poems and images to come.
ReplyDeleteKay, please send me one of your lovely image poems to include in future postings of the gallery. Thanks for joining me here.
DeleteThanks for sharing, Carol. Wise words and beautiful images from our friends.
ReplyDelete