The Dove of Hope and Peace

A very Happy New Year to you all.

Traditionally the Dove has been a sign of Hope and Peace, and by extrapolation it seems an appropriate symbol for a New Year. And that’s why a chose this image for today’s post.

Window detail, Saas Fee church - click to enlarge

But I have to confess I feel rather ambivalent about the year ahead, and I don’t imagine I’m the only one.

Hope is tempered by anxiety about economic uncertainties. Headlines are all about Zero Growth, Austerity, The Eurozone Crisis, Double Dip Recession, Rising Unemployment etc etc

And Peace feels a fragile concept in a world plagued with unresolved conflicts, and where random acts of unspeakable violence are exported and perpetrated on the innocent.

Somehow amidst all this we have to strive to be cup-half-full, rather than cup-half-empty in our approach to life and the difficulties we may have to face individually and collectively.

We all need a counter-balance – something that is both a distraction and a source of pleasure. And that, for me, is photography.

Cecil B DeMille said: ‘Creativity is a drug I cannot live without’.

I know what Cecil meant, and if you’re a photographer like me you’ll know too. Photography is all about Creativity. It’s a ‘drug’ that will lift our spirits and brighten our days. It’s the light in life. As a photographer, finding new images and refining them on the computer back home always excites me. Being ‘creative’ is my counter-balance.

And the good news is that in the digital age once we have the hardware and the software the ongoing costs of shooting pictures are minimal. This ‘drug’ is free and harmless!

So I wish you all a fantastic Creative year! Keep those creative juices flowing and banish the Blues! Keep blogging. I look forward to seeing and enjoying examples of your Creativity, and I’ll share mine. Together we’ll get our daily ‘fix’ of this powerful drug.