In college, I studied the fine arts. I spent my days in the studio with charcoal, paint and so much paper. I even took a photography class and though I might have a good eye for composition, I hated the chemistry of the dark room.
When my children were born, that desire to capture wonder on film resurfaced. Thankfully, I could avoid the dark room as everything had gone digital.
Just as I believe that mere fact of being human brings us all to wonder about things divine, I believe that every one can be an artist. We all have a some inkling toward creativity. It’s why our phones are so often out of our pockets. We have a desire to behold and cherish. Or as the American photographer Ralph Hattersley said, “We are making photographs to understand what our lives mean to us.”
Our shared practice this month is to look through the viewfinder on our phone and wonder what it all means. It’s an opportunity to slow down enough to wonder what God sees and to pay greater attention to what captures our gaze. This practice is adapted from one of the prayer moments in Retreat to the Beach which I released earlier this summer.
Like Lectio Divina, this practice invites you into a quiet curiosity about some thing you may have seen a thousand times before and then looking a little closer this time with a camera. Don’t worry about finding yourself on a beach this month but do seek out some place to share in this meditation.
It could be a place that is familiar or unfamiliar. It could be something you do in the middle of all the other things: at the bus stop, in the grocery parking lot, in the waiting room or just in your kitchen. Or you might choose to seize this opportunity to find yourself in a place that you know you’ll encounter beauty. It could be some place nearby that you’ve always wanted to go: a bird sanctuary, a nature preserve or a hiking trail. Or you might allow yourself a tiny escape to a place you know has brought you delight before. Wherever that may be, go there. Bring your phone or your preferred device for taking pictures.
Use all of your senses to center your being before opening your camera to capture every hint of the divine. Follow these gentle suggestions for Lectio Photo.
As you are inspired to do so, please share in the comments below your experience of Lectio Photo.
As you enter into this September practice, here are some questions for reflection and prayer.
What does life mean you flip through your camera roll?
How is God’s viewfinder different than your own?
How do you want to look at the world now?
If you’re curious about what God’s viewfinder might include, you might go looking at The Guardian’s Best Photographs of the Day or NPR’s The Picture Show for some perspective.
Much like everything else she writes, I loved this essay on praying the same prayer over and over again by Debie Thomas.
These tiny pauses might make you crave more time for delight and wonder. Head over to Dandelion Marketplace to create your own space for renewal with these new retreat resources I am offering. Look for more opportunities in the very near future. This month, I’m offering a discount code to my Substack readers. For both of my current retreat offerings, please enter SEPTTHREADS to get 25% off.
If you are interested in spiritual direction and are interested in a first conversation with me, please reach out or go ahead and book an appointment here. I am currently welcoming new directees and would be delighted to explore the holy threads of this life with you.
I look forward to this and am reminded of a practice in an artist's workshop I took on Monhegan Island off the coast of Maine. We were sent out with a piece of cardboard with a square hole in it about the size of a small cell phone and invited to find a beautiful composition which you had to use your mind to remember -- not photograph or sketch. It was so challenging. (We were allowed to return to only ne of the places we found with camera, watercolor pencils or traditional sketch pad.