Everything connects to something else . . .

"A human being is part of the whole, called by us the universe, a part

limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as

 something separate from the rest - a kind if optical delusion of consciousness.

This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires

and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves

from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living

creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."   - Albert Einstein

This week our theme for Photo Friday is connections. And well, that pretty much doesn't leave anything out of the artistic equation, because everything connects to something else eventually . . . physically, spiritually and by nature. Even intellectually by strands of ideas and information, AND, through this connection we call technology.

We are all connected at the very least because we all share space with this thing we call Earth. Connected to each other, to the environment, as a community, a society, and as a human race. Connected to everything whether we want to be or not, and whether or not we comprehend or acknowledge it.

I love and feel deeply connected to nature . . . everything has a purpose. I believe we were both designed to take care of each other. As stewards we have been given the honor to take care of this beautiful Earth God created, and she in return would take care of us. Unfortunately, I don't think we have been doing a very good job.

{Bonnie's texture Scratched lens}

These are more images from my visit to my local nursery last weekend. I'm not sure what kind of  butterfly this will become, but in order to change it needed to find somewhere to connect while it goes through its transformation.

A butterfly finding a connection of the sweetest kind . . . 

{Bonnie's textures - Sunbeam, Flying over Ireland and vintage vellum}

And an extremely important connection . . . of the pollinating kind!  We are extremely dependent on the connection bees have with flowers and trees. You could say our lives depend on it. Did you know that of the 90 percent of the worlds food supply (that's 100 crop species), that bees pollinate more than 70 percent? And did you know that since 1950 the bee population has gone from 5.5 million colonies to 2.5 million in 2007 while our world population keeps going up. So the next time you see a bee, thank her! Yep, the females are the gatherers of pollen and nectar.

This is my photo art Friday submission, to which I cannot remember the textures I used - I was in the groove and forgot to write them down.

A monkey connected to a branch...you have no idea what you'll find at my nursery - exotics of all kinds!!

Yes, you can have your very own monkey or komodo dragon for your garden, and cracked eggs for planters. Acres of pure humor...hours of entertainment.

But I did find a few lizard friends, this one kept peeking out behind the plant at me. I do just love these guys, they are so curious.

"Tug on anything at all and you'll find it connected to everything else in the universe." - John Muir

And to that quote, I say that our actions matter. What we choose to do or not to do, affects more than just ourselves because everything is consequential.  

I appreciate your connecting with me each week! Have a wonderful weekend all!

Love, Kim

XO

sharing with Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Cool-Clicks Thursday,

Photo Art Friday, Friday Photo Journal, Finding Serendipity {1440}