start to be great

I like this quote from Zig Ziglar. I find it so inspiring and motivational.

Zig Ziglar is a businessman, author and motivational speaker. His full name is Hilary Hinton Ziglar. Some of his popular books are: Born to Win: Find Your Success Code;Raising Positive Kids in a Negative World; Top Performance: How to Develop Excellence in Yourself and Others.

The photo I used here is a young plant just beginning to face the world and the sun. It looks like it's eager to start a new adventure into the world.

wonders of the universe

Choosing what we focus on will really create our own surroundings and our own world. So as Rachel Carson said, "The more we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction." For how can we destroy something that is wonderful?

The photo I used here is an abstraction of an original photo. I created this new image in Photoshop by playing around with the distort mode.

world full of magic

Indeed our world is full of "magic things" we just don't pay attention to the beauty and magic around us. However, it is never too late to start developing our senses. So let's begin!

The photo is an abstract of an original photo. This was created through photoshop. 

Dream and reality

This quote from Colin Powell just shows how down to earth he is. We should not just dream. We simply have to begin working on our dream and that takes "determination and hard work" according to Powell.

The photo is a raindrop on a fern frond. The raindrop clings on to the frond and stays longer out there.

rain is grace

I love this quote from John Updike. I find it so lyrical. Indeed, "rain is grace." I always love it after the rain, the kind of rain that is not destructive of course.

This photo was taken from our backyard during a rainy day.

the function of prayer

I like this quote from SorenKierkegaard. Just reminds us that when we pray, we are changed.

The photo is a macro shot of a portion of a leaf.

Life is a process

Never give up is what Richard Carlson implies in this quote. There is always room for a new beginning.

The photo used here is a leaf beginning to uncurl.

Forgiveness

Sometimes we are too strict with ourselves. We can be our worst critic and we can become so unforgiving of our mistakes. However, as Dr. Dyer says in this quote, "forgiveness is the most powerful thing you can do to yourself." If we forgive ourselves and also others, then we can move on.

The photo shows two raindrops that look like they are whispering to each other.

the word of God

I find this verse from Isaiah very comforting and reassuring. If you are told that "...the word of God will stand forever", won't you feel the same too?

The bright yellow orchids and the green background somehow fit this verse nicely. Don't you agree?

Angel and a blade of grass

I'd like to believe that it's not only a blade of grass that has an "angel that bends over it", I believe that each one of us also has an angel that tells us the same thing. What do you think?

The photo is a blade of grass with some dew drops.

Choose Hope

This quote from Christoper Reeve is so positive and so powerful! I love the way it tugs at my heart and awakens my creativity!

I coupled this quote with my photo of a fern leaflet emerging from the sea of green. I think they go well together. Don't you think so?

Experience Life

I love how John Steinbeck expressed how we experience life. I can't help but be awed when he said that "God experiences Life through each of us...." I don't know about you, but this line is simply awesome for me! 

The photo is that of a wild flower that I found one early morning in the empty lot across our front yard. I love its form and pattern. One stalk usually shows a progression of its flowers from oldest to youngest such that I called this flower - yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Tell God What You Need

This quote from the Philippians reminds us about the importance of prayer and trust. In this quote we are told to "pray about everything" and to "tell God what you need". I must admit that sometimes I forget to pray about everything, so this is a very good reminder for me.

The last line is another very good reminder about how we should pray. We have to give thanks! Someone suggested before that we should make a "gratitude list" so that we will always remember to say "thanks".

The photo I used here is that of a fern. I love to take photos of ferns because they are not only pretty but have very nice patterns. 

Direction of Your Dreams

I have admired Henry David Thoreau for as long as I can remember. I have collected some of his quotes and I'm sharing one of them now.

As you can see this is another "dream" quote. I have posted several of  them here already.  Isn't it obvious that I do believe in dreams?

The background photo is the mahogany forest in Bohol, Philippines which lines a major highway. This is such a cool place! Don't you agree?

Little Things

I love this quote about little things from Robert Brault. I think this is so true.

We sometimes or should I say often times, we  tend to ignore or are unaware about/of the little things. So I think this quote is a good reminder for us about the importance of little things.

I also wrote a line about little things after I have been teaching "Cell Biology" for sometime. I just came to love everything about the cells, so I was inspired to write this line - "God put life in a little cell to remind us that big things come from little ones." One of these days, I will share the card I made of this line.

By the way, this is a photo of a grass and its flowers. You know how small grasses are, so I thought it fits this quote very well. 

Life is full of possibilities

Life is full of possibilities. We only need to look around and discover what is in store for us. It is really up to us.

I love this quote from "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. I think it fits very nicely with my photo of this fern frond that is about to uncurl. Just imagine all the possibilities waiting for it especially with that big raindrop on it.

Dancing in the Rain

I took this photo of participants dancing in the rain during the Aliwan Festival in 2008. It was my first time to watch this festival and it rained heavily that afternoon.  It was also my first time to join an OTS or an "on the spot" photo contest.

Poor dancers, the rain was so hard, they had to scamper for cover. We, photographers, also looked for cover. I shared a tent with some other photographers and we were so cramped in that small space we could hardly move. The important thing was, we had to protect our cameras from the rain!

After sometime however, I guess the dancers got tired of waiting for the rain to stop, they were getting wet anyway, so they started dancing even in the rain. Since we were so cramped in our tent, I tried to look for a space where I can focus my camera to get a shot of what was happening. There was no space at all but down, between the legs of people. That's how I ended up with this shot - the legs of the dancers!

I was lucky the judges of the our photo contest appreciated how I was able to get this photo, so I got 2nd place for this!

Anyway, I think this photo and the quote from Vivian Green fit perfectly together. Don't you agree?

By the way, I have an article about the Aliwan Festival. If you are interested, here is the link.

How Do You Live?

I simply love this quote from Einstein. I sincerely believe that it is the way we look at life that makes us open to all the possibilities around us.

I coupled this quote with a photo of a leaf that I took one early morning. I just love how the early morning light enhanced the beauty of this leaf even if it is partially eaten up by some unknown entity, an insect maybe?

By the way, if you are interested in this as a card, poster or print, this is where you can get it.

Happy Easter2

Another Happy Easter greetings to all of you!!!