Jim Dollar's Photography and Philosophy

Balance, harmony, stability, reliability… These boulders are going to be there for a while, but permanence is out of the question for anything ever. So, we embrace the permanence of impermanence as the only thing that is guaranteed to be forever, and go on with our life. Going on with our life is one of the things I like most about us. Dancing with the day, day after day is what we do best. And I cherish that as our finest attribute. Just look at all we have been through as a species! And we are still getting up to face the day! Good for you! Good for me! Let’s go see what we can do with it!

Being who we are, doing what is ours to do when where and how it needs to be done is our gift to the world. And we do not think any of this into being. We live our way into being who we are. Not by thinking about it but simply by doing it. We watch ourselves living by observing ourselves in action and not-knowing where some of our “stuff” comes from–the way stand-up comedians laugh at themselves when they spontaneously create lines they have never heard or thought of before. We have to learn to live that way. Spontaneously. Improvisationally. Every day is Life At The Improv, with us making things up that are so true to ourselves. Babies do this all of the time. Why do we stop? It is who we are and we stop being true to ourselves. Why? Let’s devote the rest of our life to being who we are here, now, no matter what! Deal?

One stick at a time. Nature’s way is to do what is necessary without complaining, whining, pouting and/or quitting. Having tantrums is humanity’s gift to the evolutionary process.

It is all about being who we are. And we are the one who says what that is. Who do WE say that we are? How do we know what we are talking about? How can we be sure? Who would be most likely to agree with us? What would we put forth as substantiating evidence? Make a list of the things that are “just like you.” How many of those things are we proud of? How many are we ashamed of? Who/how do we what to be in the time left for living.

What do we like to do? What are our favorite things to do? How often do we do them? How long has it been since we last did something on the list? How long will it be before we do something on the list?

PS. This scene is now a housing development.

Being Who We Are is our life’s work. We live to take our mind off who we are and how things are with us. Diversion, distraction, denial is our idea of the perfect day. Well, I have a suggestion: Take up the pass time of placing ourselves in a self-induced trance state. I look out the window. Dropping into the emptiness, stillness, silence, and drifting off into the nether world of neither here nor there, waiting for notions, ideas, realizations, nudges, suggestions, whispers to snag us and drag us off into some woolgathering reverie that brings me to life in another world, offering me communion with Tao, Psyche, Intuition, and waking me up to possibilities that make the day a pleasure. And give me something to look forward to tomorrow.

Peaceful Abiding is a frame of mind, a perspective, an attitude, a point of view. It goes with us anywhere, any time, in all weather conditions. And it has no connection whatsoever with our environment or the company we keep. We take it with us wherever we go by taking nothing with more seriousness than it deserves. It is the way. The way of the Buddha can become our way like that. (Snaps fingers). Simply by not caring about anything we can’t do anything about.

“I am the way, the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father but by me.” And, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus was a bit of an Egotist and maybe a tad psychotic. But he made enough of an impact on people that some of them had visions of him after he was “crucified, dead and buried.” And they told everyone else they had to believe them or go to hell. If Donald Trump can have rabid followers, anyone can. Where are you going to go to find something you can count on? I suggest the emptiness, stillness and silence, waiting for the mud to settle and the water to clear, and see where it goes. You will be safe as long as you maintain your sense of humor, and don’t take anything with more seriousness than it deserves.

If this is your house, what’s your life like? How can we live with what we live with without it showing through? What comes first? What remains in place the longest? What supports the arrangement if not the conversations? How we talk, and what we talk about, and the vocabulary we use are the determining factors in how we live and what we do–reflecting how interested we are in what we are saying, and how interesting we are for other people to talk to. If you want to be somebody speak like you are somebody. Understanding that how we speak is a direct and immediate reflection of what we read. And what we do. And where we live. How many people do we know who are interesting to talk with? How interesting are we to them to talk with? How many questions do we ask in a day? If we want to write, we have to start writing, and write all the time.

This is one of the places that restores my balance and harmony, stability, rhythm and flow. That is a lot to ask of a single scene, and this one is glad to oblige. The downside is that it is a long way from home. The upside is that I have the images. And that is the joy of photography after we have aged out. It is a gift that “keeps on giving.” And I get to share them with you so the blessing expands. What a joy!

And that opens the door for reflection on ways we might minister to the inner deficit’s in compensation for a lifetime of not enough in the way of grace and compassion. Where do we go to restore our soul? To gather our forces and take ourselves the places nearby that are good places for our body to be? There are nurseries and restaurants around me that fill the bill. Chick-Fil-A is a quiet surprise. And there is a breakfast spot on the list where my wife and I meet with the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, or those who can be free for brunch that day, and that is a regular event we all look forward to. We just fell into it with out planning and with out a director. Too much organization takes the fun out of it for me, and I love no cleanup.

I’m leaning more toward going slow and taking my time, and enjoying getting to the places I like to be throughout the week.

This image captures peaceful abiding here, now as well as it can be captured, lived, expressed. Such is the way of the Buddha, and the way of the Christ. What more is there to do, to be? This is doing what needs to be done, when, where and how it needs to be done as well as anyone can do it, and that is all that needs to be done. Who can do more than that? This is the art and the practice of being alive and the way of the Way exactly as it needs doing.

The Way of the Buddha, 6th Edition is now an eBook on Kindle. And I am writing almost daily here and on my Tao-Psyche-Intuition.com blog. When I quit writing, I will be dead or dying. I have never know anyone with so much to say! Just today it occurred to me that there are three Biblical texts regarding the sayings of Jesus that, when understood (And they are point blank so everyone could have understood this from the beginning) will do away with Christianity instantly).

They are: “Why don’t you understand for yourselves what is right?” “The Spirit is like the wind that blows where it will.” “You have ears to hear! Let them hear!” “You have eyes to see! Let them see!” In these three texts, Jesus is telling us to take the authority for our own life and to assume the responsibility of knowing and doing what needs to be done, when, where and how it needs to be done. Which also happens to be the ground and foundation of Taoism and Zen. And clarifying the realization that those who know, know the same things.

This image is emblematic of my career as a nature photographer. What I like most about it is that it is almost not there. Yet, it’s impact is quite perceptible. It reminds me of me in those ways. I like my potential as a surprise and enjoy sneaking up on people. And not hanging around. Being gone in no time at all. Now you see him, now you don’t. When the fog came in, the entire lake disappeared. It is on the way out as we watch here, now.